Forbidden Ties

Chapter 10: "Worth The Risk."

Sam's P.O.V.

I couldn’t stop staring at my screen. The moment Jax’s face appeared in the group chat’s live feed, my stomach dropped. I hadn’t even made it back to my room yet. I was frozen halfway up the stairs, phone trembling in my hand as I watched him speak to what felt like the whole world.

His voice was steady, but I could see the tension in his jaw, the fire in his eyes. He didn’t look like the Jax I knew—carefree, reckless, impossible to read. This Jax was raw, angry, and heartbreakingly vulnerable.

The comments scrolled by so fast I couldn’t keep up, but the ones I did see were brutal:

“So they’re step-siblings? Gross.”

“This family is a train wreck.”

“Bet it wasn’t just a kiss.”

I wanted to throw my phone, wanted to scream at the people tearing him apart, tearing us apart. But I couldn’t look away.

I clutched the phone tighter as Jax’s voice cut through the chaos of the comments.

“Look,” he began, his tone calm but laced with determination, “I get it. Everyone has an opinion. But here’s what actually happened that day, and you all deserve to know the truth.”

The feed quieted, the scrolling comments slowing down as viewers tuned in. Even through the tiny screen, I could see him leaning forward, his elbows on his knees, speaking like he was leveling with an old friend.

“That picture you’re all losing your minds over?” He shook his head, a bitter laugh escaping. “It wasn’t what it looked like. It was a dumb moment during a truth-or-dare game. I didn’t even know Sam was my stepsister yet. None of us did. We’d met, what? Thirty minutes before that picture was taken?”

I blinked, my heart pounding as he paused to let that sink in. The comments started up again, slower now. Some defending, others still accusing.

“It wasn’t some forbidden romance or whatever story you’re making up. It was harmless fun. A dare. And yeah, maybe it was a little reckless, but it wasn’t planned, and it sure as hell wasn’t meant to end up like this.”

His jaw tightened, and I could tell he was holding back so much more. “I get it, though. You see a picture, you fill in the blanks. But I’m telling you the truth. You don’t have to believe me, but at least now you know.”

For a second, I thought he was done, but then his expression softened—something I hadn’t expected. “And before anyone decides to target Sam over this, just know…she didn’t deserve any of this. She’s been through enough without people making her the villain. If you’ve got a problem, take it up with me.”

My breath caught. He didn’t owe me this, not after everything. But hearing him defend me like that made something shift in my chest. The boy who always played the rebel was finally standing up for something real—and it was me.

The live ended abruptly, the screen freezing on Jax’s resolute face before it faded to black. I stared at my phone, unable to move, my heart tangled between gratitude and disbelief. He’d just turned the narrative on its head, shouldering the blame, and somehow shielding me in the process.

But why?

The truth was, Jax didn’t owe me a damn thing. If anything, I’d expected him to dodge the fallout, maybe even spin it in his favor like he always seemed to do. But tonight, he’d done the opposite. He’d put himself in the firing line. For me.

I paced the room, restless energy bubbling under my skin. My phone buzzed with incoming notifications—texts from people I hadn’t spoken to in years, screenshots of the live, and even a few apologies from those who had jumped to conclusions.

I wanted to feel relief, maybe even gratitude, but instead, I felt...uneasy. Because for all his smooth words and calm demeanor, Jax wasn’t out of the woods yet.

The truth might’ve swayed some people, but I’d seen enough to know how the internet worked. It didn’t care about explanations or context. It thrived on chaos, on the drama of things left unsaid. And no matter how hard Jax tried to control the story, there would always be those who didn’t want to listen.

And then there was us.

What was I supposed to do now? Thank him? Pretend this changed anything? Because it didn’t. If anything, it made everything more complicated.

I flopped onto my bed, groaning into my pillow. My mind wouldn’t stop replaying his words, especially the way he’d said my name. Not with anger or sarcasm, but something else entirely.

The phone buzzed again, and I reluctantly glanced at the screen. A new text from Jax.

We should talk.

I stared at the words, my thumb hovering over the keyboard. But what could I even say to him?

Instead of responding, I tossed the phone aside and stared up at the ceiling. Talking to Jax would mean facing everything I’d been trying to avoid. The picture, the fallout, and, worst of all, the feelings I couldn’t seem to shake.

I couldn’t stop thinking about him.

Even as I tried to focus on anything else, my thoughts kept drifting back to the way Jax had spoken on that live—steady, confident, and protective in a way I hadn’t expected. I hated that it affected me as much as it did, but the truth was, it did.

And now, knowing he wanted to talk? That he’d reached out to me, despite everything? It stirred something in me that I couldn’t quite name.

I sat up, grabbing my phone again, reading his message for the tenth time.

We should talk.

Talk. As if talking wouldn’t make this worse. As if sitting in a room with him wouldn’t remind me of the way his lips had felt on mine that day. The warmth of his breath, the way his hands had gripped me like I was the only thing that mattered.

I shivered, my face heating at the memory. Damn it, why did my brain always go there?

Because no matter how much I wanted to deny it, no matter how wrong it was, I couldn’t help the way my body reacted when Jax was near.

He had this pull, this effortless way of getting under my skin, and now that I’d seen another side of him—one that cared, one that fought for me—I was in even deeper trouble.

I glanced at the time. It was late, and the house was quiet. Sam’s mom and Jax’s dad had probably gone to bed after the drama earlier, leaving the two of us in this suspended tension.

Without thinking, I grabbed my phone and typed out a reply.

Where?

I hesitated for a moment before hitting send. The three dots appeared almost immediately, and my heart raced.

My room.

The response was simple, but it sent my pulse into overdrive. My room. The last place I should go, the last line I should cross again.

And yet, here I was, slipping out of bed, my bare feet padding against the cold floor as I made my way to his door.

I hesitated outside Jax’s door, my hand hovering just above the handle. My heartbeat pounded in my ears, loud enough to drown out the tiny voice of reason telling me to turn back.

Before I could second-guess myself, the door opened. Jax stood there, his expression unreadable, but his eyes told me everything—they burned with the same intensity I felt.

“Sam,” he said, my name falling from his lips like a prayer.

I stepped inside, the door clicking shut behind me. The air between us felt charged, crackling with something electric and impossible to ignore.

“You didn’t have to come,” he murmured, his voice low, but there was relief in it, like he’d hoped I would anyway.

“I couldn’t stay away,” I admitted, my voice barely a whisper.

His gaze softened, and for a moment, it felt like the rest of the world didn’t exist. No viral pictures, no judgment, no chaos. Just us.

Jax took a step closer, and I could feel the warmth radiating off him. His hand lifted slightly, as if he wanted to touch me but was holding himself back.

“What now?” I asked, my voice breaking.

His eyes searched mine, and the corner of his mouth lifted in the smallest, saddest smile.

"Now," he said, voice low and deliberate, "we decide if breaking everything we know is worth it."

He stepped closer, his gaze steady, searching my face for an answer.

"Only if you want it to be."

I didn’t think—I couldn’t. The words slipped out before I could stop them.

"Just shut up and kiss me."