Page 75 of Where It All Began
Phoebe grinned to herself.
“That’s exactly the kind of woman… or man—no judgment—that I hope you each end up with. Your mother is a strong, smart, incredible woman who is brave enough to stand up for herself and others. What I worry about for you boys is running across someone who isn’t as, shall we say ‘vocal,’ in her opinions or firm with their boundaries.”
“What are you trying to say, Dad?” Jax asked.
Beckett was frowning too.
“Jesus, I wish I had some coffee in me,” John muttered to himself. “Alright. Let’s go back to the ice cream. Beckett, say you call up Moon Beam and ask her to go for ice cream.”
“Sure. Okay. Can I borrow Mom’s car?”
“Focus, son. So, you call her up, she says yes to ice cream. But then she calls you back and says she’s changed her mind.”
“Why would she do that?” Jax asked, devastated at the possibility.
John gave a short laugh. “I can’t believe this is how I’m spending my Saturday morning. No one knows why she changed her mind, and the point is it doesn’t matter why. It means her answer is now no. So, should Beckett show up to her house and drag her into the car and force her to go for ice cream?”
“No, but I think he should swing her by the doctor’s if she’s saying no to ice cream.”
Beckett punched his brother in the shoulder. “Ice cream issex, man. Keep up.”
“Oh. No wonder I like it so much,” Jax grinned.
“If I get through this without decking you both, it’ll be a miracle,” John sighed. His sons grinned at him, unaffected by the threat.
“Okay. Back to the ice cream sex,” Jax said. “If Moon Beam says no to ice cream sex, then it would be dickish if Beckett tried to force her to go for ice cream sex.”
“Exactly,” John nodded. “Dickishandillegal. Even if she said yes first, that doesn’t matter, and if I ever hear of one of you throwing that excuse in someone’s face, I’ll kick your ass before I murder you.”
“Got it,” Beckett saluted
“Okay, now let’s fast forward a few years. Say you’re with a girl at a party, and she says yes. You go someplace private, and she falls asleep or she’s had too much to drink and passes out. What do you do?”
“Well, you sure as hell don’t give her ice cream. She could choke on it and die or something,” Jax reasoned.
“Sex, dummy. He’s still talking about sex.”
“Iknowthat. It’s the same thing. Why would you feed a passed-out girl ice cream is the same as why would you try to have sex with her.”
“Good boy,” John nodded. “To recap, she needs to feel safe enough to say yes, to be physically capable of saying yes, and if she changes her mind for any reason, you respect that or the ass-kicking and murdering happen.
Beckett saluted. “Got it, Dad. We won’t let you down.”
“I know you two won’t. You boys are turning out to be a lot smarter and more thoughtful than I was at your age. Now, do we need to talk about the mechanics of how to make sure you’re doing it well?”
Beckett’s grin split his face. “No, sir. I think I got that part down. There were no complaints last night. Carter says, ‘Your focus should always be on the girl and making her feel good.’” His spot-on impression of his older brother made Phoebe smile.
“And that’s why high-fiving over sex is immature. A woman isn’t a touchdown or a solid burn on your buddy. If anything, you should fall down and kiss her feet in gratitude,” John said.
“Is that what you do to Mom?” Jax asked like the true smart ass he was.
“You’re damn right I do,” John told him without a hint of shame. “Right before I start apologizing for giving her three thick-headed boys.”
Jax grinned.
“Sex is just like everything else worthwhile in this world. It’s about having a healthy respect. It’s a big deal, and it sounds like you did everything right, Beckett. So, congratulations, son.” He held out his hand to Beckett who shook it and beamed like a lighthouse beacon.
“Thanks, Dad.”
