Page 10 of Fighting Temptation (Men of Honor 1)
“Thanks Antonio. Sorry about this.”
Antonio nods at him then turns to me, “Take care Miss Julia, I’ll see you soon.”
As soon as we get into my car Jaxson loses it and starts punching my steering wheel, “FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!” I jump, not expecting the outburst. I know he would never hurt me. I’ve seen him like this enough times that I just stay quiet till he gets himself under control.
He looks over at me, rage and worry consuming his expression, “Jules you have to promise me that you won’t go anywhere near that asshole. Not ever!”
“Jesus Jaxson, what is it with you two? Why do y’all hate each other so much?”
“Just promise me you’ll stay the fuck away from him. If he gives you any problems you go to Cooper right away, ok?”
I’m a little surprised at how intense he is about this. “I’ll be fine Jax, I am pretty sure he only talks to me now just to get under your skin. He’s always been nothing but polite to me.”
“That’s because he wants in your fucking pants! Christ Julia, will you just trust me on this? I know shit about him that you don’t,” he looks so panicked that I lean over and hug him.
“Alright, I promise. Don’t worry. I’ll go to Cooper if I need to, but I’m sure it’ll be fine.” I try to reassure him as best as I can. He wraps his arms around me, holding me tight.
“I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you.”
My heart melts and I wonder what he knows about Wyatt that has him so concerned for my safety. “Nothing is going to happen to me. You’re the one who’s going to be a Seal, you are in more danger than I am.” I get sad now thinking about him leaving. I pull back from him and smile, “Come on, let’s go to the beach. In the future please don’t beat my car again.”
“Sorry,” he smirks not looking very apologetic.
“When do classes start for you?” Jaxson asks, while picking up our garbage from supper.
I brush off the crumbs from our blanket, “Three weeks. I just purchased my text books.” I’m attending college in Charleston to get my teaching degree. “I’m not really looking forward to four more years of school but I’m hoping the elementary school will have a position for me when I’m done.”
Jaxson walks over and sits back down beside me. “You’re gonna be a good teacher Jules.”
“Thanks,” I say giving him a smile. “So tell me what all this training is going to entail for you?”
He looks at me doubtfully, “You really want to hear about it?”
“Of course I do.” I scoot closer to him and get into our familiar position of me wrapping both my arms around his one and lean back on the log behind us. We stare out at the sun that’s just starting to set.
“Well BUD/S, which stands for Basic Under Water Demolition/SEAL, is a 6 month process with different stages. The first 8 weeks are the toughest on recruits, both mentally and physically, or so I hear. They call it ‘hell week’. They put us through a lot of shit to see how much our mind and body can endure. I’ve heard a lot of people drop out before the 8 weeks are finished because they can’t handle it.” Jaxson stops explaining when he looks over and sees my horrified expression, “Ok, that’s enough info for you!” he says chuckling.
I stare at him like he’s crazy, “What if something happens to you?”
“Jules I’m in training, they’re not going to try and kill us. They’re just gonna make us we wish we were dead,” he laughs at this while my stomach clenches and my throat tightens.
“It’s not funny Jaxson,” I say quietly.
He puts his arm around me, “Hey, I’ll be fine, I can handle it Jules. Nothing is going to happen to me, I promise.”
We’re both staring at each other now; we’re so close that I can feel his breath on my face. It wouldn’t take much to have our lips touch. I see him stare at my mouth and I wonder if I should make my move now. But then he looks away and the moment is gone. Darn! It’s kind of awkward so I decide now is a good time to give him his present.
“I have something for you,” I sit up and start digging in my purse.
“What? Why the hell did you get me something? I don’t need anything Julia.” I know he doesn’t like receiving presents, but I don’t care.
“Stop your grumbling, it’s nothing big. It’s important to me for you to have this.” I turn back to him and hand him the small wrapped present. He looks at me annoyed and then starts unwrapping it. When he gets to the small jewelry box he stares at it uncomfortably.
“Don’t worry, it’s not an engagement ring,” I say teasingly. Jaxson grins while opening the box. He looks confused at the stainless steel chain with the medal pendant, I can tell he’s wondering what it is, so I explain: “It’s a medallion of Archangel Michael, it’s for protection. I had Father Gabriel bless it for you. Promise me you will always wear it Jaxson, no matter what you’re doing, or where you are, you’ll always have it with you.” He’s staring at me with an emotion I can’t decipher and I start feeling unsure, thinking he might not like it.
“How much was this?” he asks suspiciously.
I roll my eyes, “Not much I swear. I already had the pendant, I just bought the chain.”
He looks back down at the necklace, “The pendant was yours?”
I take a deep breath knowing he’s not going to like what I say next: “Ya, my mom gave it to me.”
He drops the necklace back in my hand so fast I barely have time to register it before he shouts, “Fuck that Julia! I’m not taking something your mom gave to you.”
I expected this. “Stop! It’s my pendant and I will do what I want. I have many things from my mother Jaxson. I know she would be happy that I’m giving this to you.” I shift now so I’m sitting right in front of him. His ice blue eyes are burning with frustration and I’m worried he’s not going to accept it. “Please take it Jax, you need it more than I do. It gives me comfort knowing you’ll have it.”
