Page 24 of It's a Wonderful Knife

I met Jax’s frazzled gaze over her head. “You should leave, Jax. Give Elle some space.”

He scrambled to his feet and raced out of the kitchen. With a growl, Madison followed, her face mottled with anger.

Chloe came over to her mom, and she put her arms around her. “It was just a kiss, Mama, it didn’t mean a thing.”

“Jax is a despicable person,” mumbled Elle. “I wish he’ddisappear.”

Wincing, Chloe said, “You don’t mean that. You’re just upset. I don’t want Jax to go anywhere.”

“He’s a bad person.” Sniffing and wiping at her eyes, Elle said, “You know I’m right, Mona. He doesn’t belong here. Was he going to have sex with her right here, if I hadn’t walked in and caught him?”

“Geez, Mama.” Chloe’s face was bright pink.

“He needs to be fired,” Elle grated.

“It’s hard to fire someone during our busy season, you know that, Elle.”

“So he can just do what he wants?” Elle sounded a bit hysterical.

Leo sighed. “You know Mona is right, Elle. Just be patient. Jax will get what’s coming to him in due time.”

“I’ve put up with him for far too long already. For goodness’ sake, he’s twelve years older than Chloe. He’s disgusting.” Elle was still angry, but she wasn’t crying anymore. Maybe because Chloe seemed fine.

Ezra walked into the kitchen, glowering. “What in tarnation is happening in here? You’re scaring the guests.”

The second Ezra entered the room, Mona pulled away from Leo’s grasp. “It’s nothing.”

Scowling, Ezra said, “It must be something.”

“It’s over and done with,” Mona said irritably.

“It better be, woman,” grumbled Ezra.

Leo shifted uneasily, but he didn’t speak.

I cleared my throat. “Elle, I need to know that you understand grabbing a knife and threatening Jax was wrong.”

She gave me a sheepish glance. “I was just upset.”

“Still, that’s no way to handle a situation like this.”

Grimacing, she nodded. “I know.”

“Do you?” I asked, studying her closely. “Because if you do something like that again, I’ll have no choice but to arrest you. Kissing someone isn’t illegal; stabbing them or threatening them with a deadly weapon is.”

She wilted under my hard stare. “I’m sorry, Royce. I just lost my head.”

Sighing, I couldn’t help but feel compassion for her. Chloe was all she had in the world, and there was nothing like the love of a mother for her child. “If Jax does something that upsets you again, you need to go straight to Mona or Ezra. Talk to them so they can handle the situation.”

“I will, I promise,” she said quietly. “I’m embarrassed I lost my temper so horribly. I truly am.” She grabbed Chloe’s hand. “It’s just, Chloe is my world.”

“Aww, Mama.” Chloe hugged her mom. “I’m not a little girl. I can handle a guy like Jax. He’s just a flirt.”

“More like a predator,” grumbled Elle, but she gave me a guilty glance. “However, I won’t take matters into my own hands anymore. I promise.”

Mona straightened. “Okay, does that satisfy you, Royce?”

I sighed. “I guess.”