Mafia's Ex Wife

Chapter Fourteen

Elisabeth

It's nearly 4:30PM when I hear my phone ding, alerting me that I've got an email. At first, I assume it's a new order coming in or something from Harper's school, but when I glance down at the screen, my heart skips.

Holy shit.

Despite quoting me two to three weeks on there police reports, they're sitting in my inbox after only three days. I want to open the email, and I almost do, but somehow it doesn't feel right without Jax. Not only did I promise to keep him in the loop, but finding out the precise details of how Emily died seems like something we should do together.

Truthfully, I'm not sure I can stomach it on my own. Every gruesome, bloody detail will be laid out in those pages, and that's not the kind of thing you want to learn about a person. Especially one you loved as deeply as I loved Emily.

And for all of the darkness and evil around him, Jax has a special way of softening the blow.

I wipe the frosting off of my hands and onto my apron as I pick up the burner phone and fire off a text to Jax.

I got the case files.

I barely set it down before his response comes through.

I'm done at the warehouse in fifteen minutes and we can meet.

I thought we couldn't be seen together.

I've got constant eyes on the Costas family. They don't know you're working with Arias yet. So, your place or mine? 

I press my lips together. When I agreed to do this for Jax, I knew it meant we'd be working closely, but it's still a tough pill to swallow. I've spent the last several years putting as much distance between us as I possibly could and now he's back almost as if he never left. And if the other day is any indication of where his head is at, he's not going to let me off easy.

Maybe it's a false sense of security, but it somehow feels safer to have him at my house where I can control things, and with Mike and Harper off on their weekly father-daughter date, the house will be quiet. 

How about mine?

I'll bring dinner. See you soon, Lizzie. 

God, what did I just do? Agreeing to spend an evening alone with Jax? My stomach flutters, and I don't know if its nerves or excitement. Regardless, the anticipation has me antsy. 

Focusing on what I've got left to do at the bakery feels nearly impossible, so I clean up quickly and head home. Before Jax gets here, I rake some dry shampoo through my hair and apply a fresh coat of lip gloss. It feels almost embarrassing to be getting ready for him this way. It's not like I need to impress him, and besides, Jax has seen every version of me. No amount of makeup can hide that. 

The ring of the bell makes me jump. When I open the door, Jax stands with his back to me, pizza in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other. He turns at the sound, grinning when our eyes meet. "Hey Lizzie." 

"Come in." I move to the side, and Jax slips past me into the house. 

He walks in like he owns the place, making his way into the kitchen and setting the pizza box on the counter. "You said you were coming from the bakery so I figured you wouldn't have eaten. Still like a good margherita?" 

"Love it." A part of me loves that he still remembers that. "I'll grab us some plates."

Jax grabs two long stem glasses out of the cabinet, opening the wine bottle and pouring us each a glass. In all of our time together, I can count on one hand the number of times that I've seen him drink wine. It was always whiskey with him.