Reckless (Renegades 1)

“So fucking complicated…” He caught the next cable, threaded it. Wiped at sweat. “Can’t just make…” He caught the last cable, threaded it. “A simple jump anymore. ”

Another cable came at him. A fourth cable, for which there was no use. Jax turned his head and caught the carabiner attached to the end just before it cracked his jaw.

“What the fuck?” he sputtered, hand in front of his face in case Troy decided to throw another. “Troy!”

“Oh yeah. ” He pulled his gaze up from the concrete below, where the rest of their team worked. “Sorry, boss. Little distraction. ”

“I’ll distract you, dumbshit,” he muttered. “You don’t get distracted thirty feet above concrete. ”

“Dude, relax. Look down there. That’s some good mood walking, right there. If that don’t perk you up, you need medical help. ”

Jax reached toward his feet, grabbed the beam, and pulled his legs out. He relaxed into the safety harness and wiped more sweat from his face. Then opened his eyes to a red Ferrari parked one hundred feet below.

His heart skipped, then sped. His gaze scanned the scene, searching for Lexi. Rubi sauntered toward the men, but his gaze held on the Ferrari, willing Lexi to step out. His banked hunger broke through and started gnawing at his raw gut. What he’d give for the mere sight of her.

“Mmm-mmm,” Troy said. “That is some sweet stuff. ”

“I’m going on belay,” Jax said, taking the safety rope from Troy and switching the rigging around so he’d be secure up there alone. “I’m going down. ”

“Dude, we’ve got six more pulleys—”

Jax shot Troy a look. “I’m going down. ”

“Fine, fine. You’re the one who’s going to have to climb back up here. ”

Jax loosened his anchor and started toward the ground. The slide lasted only seconds but felt like it took forever. His mind darted a hundred different places, but fear took the lead. He hit the ground, unhooked the safety harness, and jogged toward Rubi.

Lexi’s okay. Lexi’s okay.

As he approached Rubi, she turned. As soon as he saw her smile, all the fear drained out of him. The relief was so complete, he staggered backward a few steps before he caught himself. He braced his hands on his knees and stared at the cement until his head stopped spinning.

“Dude. ” Wes’s boots came into view. “You okay?”

Jax nodded, unable to speak.

Fuck. That had hit him out of nowhere.

He’d been repressing everything so completely—how much he missed her, how empty he felt without her, how she was better off without him—it lashed back on him now like a whip.

He finally looked up and met Rubi’s frown but was still breathing hard when he asked, “Is…Lexi…okay?”

Rubi studied him with intense blue-green eyes filled with a mix of curiosity and humor. She wore skintight blue jeans that showed the perfect shape of her highway-long legs, heels that made those legs look even longer, and a halter top that showed both her flat belly and her cleavage.

Jax’s guys were tripping over themselves to take in every inch of her.

She turned to them, offered a flirtatious smile. “Can we have a minute, boys?”

The guys wandered back to their gear, muttering to each other, laughing quietly. Everyone except Wes. He crossed his arms and kept grinning like an idiot.

“You think you’re special,” she asked Wes, “don’t you, Golden Boy?”

“I know I’m special. ” Wes’s grin widened. “Just ask my mama. ”

That pulled a deep, rolling laugh from Rubi. She might mesmerize every other man on the site, but her playfulness was bugging the shit out of Jax.

“Wes. ” Jax pulled his friend’s attention. “Get lost. ”

Wes turned a lazy gaze back on Rubi. “Dinner sometime, beautiful?”