This is my J&C adaptation of Susan Sizemore’s novel, "His Last Best Hope" Muchas gracias to Nish and Lea for their help with Spanish vocabulary!

I can feel the magic floatin’ in the air

The gentle pitter-patter of raindrops on the window caused Chloe to stir. Her head rested on Jax’s chest as she lay in his embrace, Jax’s left arm curving around her shoulders. His right hand was curled around her hip as her left hand found a place over his heart. She fought against the noises that tried to pull her from slumber, wriggling in bed and snuggling closer to Jax’s warmth.

When Chloe realized that it was time to wake up, the fact that she was sleeping with a man finally registered with her. She arched one eyebrow and opened one eye cautiously. {OK – we’ve both still got our clothes on. That’s a good thing. That means we slept together, but all we did was sleep. So that’s a good thing.} She chewed on her lower lip, not making a sound but just listening to the re-assuring beat of Jax’s heart and the feel of his chest rising and falling.

All my thoughts just seem to settle on the breeze

Chloe tried to sort out the conflicting feelings in her heart. This was a man who may have had a part in killing her family (although she was fairly certain that the man named Faison was really responsible), who had kidnapped and terrorized her, had dragged her all around Montserrat for and entire day, had been the reason she was shot at and nearly raped…….

And yet, this same man made her feel more secure and comforted her more than Ned ever had in their time together. Sleeping in his arms for the second night in a row somehow made her never want to wake up any other way. As she looked up at Jax, her eyes shown with exquisite vulnerability and tenderness.

And I can feel you breathe, it’s washing over me,

Meanwhile, Jax was fighting feelings of his own. His body couldn’t help but respond to the stimulus of being so near to a beautiful, warm, apparently willing woman. As he heard the sheets of rain cascading down the windows, thoughts of spending a stormy day with Chloe under him in a soft bed kept running through his head. Under him. Over him. Him inside her……

A low rumble of thunder in the distance brought them both back to the present. Jax gently pushed the hair back off her forehead with his first finger. "Good morning."

Chloe’s eyes drifted towards the window and then back to Jax. "Doesn’t sound too much like it is," she countered in a whisper.

{We could *make* it a good morning……and a good day……} Jax fought for control. "You feeling better this morning?"

"Yep." Chloe gave a slight nod. "I’m sorry I fell apart on you like that last night….."

Jax placed his fingers against her lips. "Don’t worry about it. You were entitled." He rubbed his thumb against her lower lip. "You’ve been through a lot in the past 48 hours."

When Jax felt the soft caress of Chloe’s tongue on his thumb, his breath hitched. She heard his heart beating a staccato rhythm inside his chest. Chloe reached up and tentatively ran her hand along the blonde stubble that decorated his jawline. She felt Jax shudder when her hand meandered over to his mouth and her fingers traced his lips much the same as he had just done to her. Jax took her chin between his fingers and raised it towards him.

A loud crash of thunder shook the room, causing both Jax and Chloe to jump apart. They lay on their back in the bed side by side and Jax threw his hand up over his forehead. "Bloody h*ll!!! I thought the hurricane was over!"

"Hurricane?" Chloe sat straight up, putting the flat of her hand on Jax’s chest for leverage. "You’re kidding, right?"

The intimate moment past, Jax rolled out of his side of the bed and walked towards the French doors. "Well, it may not have been a hurricane, but a pretty strong tropical storm rolled through here about a few days ago." He pushed back the nylon curtains and frowned at the storm raging outside. "There’s parts of the island that still don’t have power."

Chloe watched the muscles of his bare chest ripple as he flexed his arms. Jax must have shed his shirt sometime during the night as well as his shoulder holster. As he let the curtains fall back into place, there was a soft knocking at their door. The cat – Pantera – immediately was back. In one fluid move, Jax grabbed the holster from a nearby chair, donned it, and sprinted to the door.

She didn’t realize she was holding her breath until Chloe heard a hushed feminine voice from the hallway. Jax visibly relaxed and yanked the door open to reveal Leanita. She gave him a sultry smile and then sashayed slowly into the room. When her eyes fell upon Chloe, they blazed with furious jealousy.

Leanita walked over to a small table and set down the large tray she was holding. After closing the door behind her, Jax followed. Chloe couldn’t help but notice the way his hand went to the madam’s derriere, which was swaying suggestively beneath the garish print of the satin robe she wore. "Gracias, succulentita," he growled, just as Leanita turned and placed a large ripe strawberry between his lips.

"De nada, Pantera," she purred in reply. Her eyelids fluttered seductively but then she lost her smile and glared in Chloe’s direction. Chloe picked up on the feline territorial challenge and sat up straight in bed, running her hands through her hair and arching her back to suggest that she had enjoyed a very satisfying night.

Jax saw the static charge that ran between the two women and turned Leanita’s face back towards his by placing his knuckle beneath her chin. "Have you seen Tomas, wapa?"

Leanita tried to keep her eyes on Chloe but Jax forced her to focus on him instead. She frowned slightly. "El padre?" She shook her head and Chloe’s entire body froze at the mention of the word. "No – not since the storm, Pantera."

Jax swore under his breath. Chloe tried to follow the conversation but a rapid stream of Spanish followed, with both Jax and Leanita gesturing towards the outside. He finally bent down and buried his face at the crook of her neck, causing the madam to arch her back and purr in satisfaction. When he pulled back, she trailed her hand down his chest and smiled. Then she turned, slowly walked back to the door, and left the room, but not before giving Chloe one last smug grin.

"We’ve got to get out of here." Chloe jumped when Jax punctuated his order with a slap to the bedcovers. "Leanita says the storm isn’t going to get much better, and I’ve got an appointment to keep later today."

"With Faison?" Chloe swung her legs out of the bed and wandered over to the tray. She took a piece of sliced orange and popped it into her mouth. "Or with that other guy that wants to kill you? Corinthos?"

Jax sauntered lazily back towards the tray and took another strawberry. "Neither one, not that it’s any of your business." He gazed at it critically and then offered it to Chloe, placing it between her lips as she stared into his eyes. "There’s a man who owns a large resort on the other side of the island – part legitimate, part not. His name is Stefan Cassidine. He and I have some transactions to complete."

Jax turned his back and walked away. Chloe watched him but then crossed her arms defiantly. "So, who’s the priest for?"

Jax froze but didn’t turn back to face Chloe. "What priest?"

"Oh, come on, Jax!" Chloe threw her hands up in the air and walked angrily over to stand in front of him. "I’ve watched enough old Zorro reruns to know *some* Spanish!" She put her hands on her hips. "Who is this Tomas guy you were asking Miss Red Hot Chili Peppers about? Is he really a priest?"

"He….uh……Tomas is an old friend of mine," Jax admitted. "And yes – he’s a priest." He turned away from Chloe, going to the window and gazing out at the storm again. "He’s the friend I was taking you to before those guys tried to kill us."

"He’s……You were…..?" Chloe made loud, outraged sputtering noises. "You were taking me to a PRIEST? All this time when I thought you were going to sell me to some white slavery ring or something?"

Jax gave her an "Oh, pleeeeeease," look. "Tomas is the pastor at Saint Isabel’s Mission not far from here. He’ll have the right connections to get you on a plane back to the United States where you’ll be safe."

He was so busy staring out the window at the rain that he jumped when Chloe came over and punched his arm angrily. "Well, why the H*LL didn’t you tell me that sooner?" She crossed her arms again and tapped her toe as though she was talking to a rebellious eight-year-old boy.

Jax ignored the slap and simply shrugged. "You never asked me." Chloe’s jaw dropped and she made more furious strangled noises but Jax ignored them. He turned away from her and went back to the breakfast tray to pick up a glass of juice. "Now, hurry up and have some breakfast so we can be on our way before this storm gets any worse."

"NO."

Jax gulped the orange juice and slapped his chest to prevent a coughing fit. His Adam’s apple slid up and down as he swallowed hard. "No, you don’t want any breakfast?"

Chloe maintained the same posture – arms crossed in defiance, toe tapping. "No, I’m *not* coming with you."

Jax set the glass down and then looked up at her. Chloe’s heart seemed to skip a beat and she had to remind herself that he meant her no harm as the blue lasers in his eyes seared her flesh. He hooked his thumbs in his front pockets and walked slowly towards her, his hips keeping time with the sound of his footsteps. "What do you mean, you’re not coming with me?"

Chloe fought the urge to stand down in the face of Jax’s dominating glare. "I mean exactly what I said -- I’m not coming with you." He stopped just inches from her, his arms akimbo, his bare chest peeking out from beneath his open shirt. It reminded her of the first time she lay eyes on him aboard the Morgana. As she felt the combination of raw heat and sexual magnetism coming from the man, her vocal chords seemed to spasm. "You’re a dangerous man to be around," she whispered.

"Really?" Jax’s husky murmur made it obvious that he saw the double meaning in her phrase. He raised one hand to run his finger down her bare arm and was pleased to see gooseflesh blossom where he touched. "And why would that be?"

Chloe swallowed hard. "Because……." As Jax leaned towards her, his lips zeroing in on hers, she tried to keep a level head. "Because…..half the people on this island are trying to kill you!" She pushed past him somehow and walked shakily towards the breakfast tray. "Since I’ve known you, I’ve been shot at, hijacked, almost raped by two greasy Pancho Villa wannabes……."

Jax spun and pointed an accusing finger at her. "That wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t run away from me!"

"And I wouldn’t have run away if you had told me you were taking me to a PRIEST!!" Chloe’s chin raised a notch in victory as Jax seemed temporarily at a loss for words. "Anyway, I’ll be just fine without you." Chloe turned back to the tray to look over the selection of fresh fruit and never saw Jax’s face growing redder by the second. "I’ll just wait until it stops raining, and then I’ll ask some of those nice whores downstairs how to get to Saint Isabel’s, and then I’ll go there and find this Padre Tomas and ask him….."

Chloe’s entire body jerked as Jax grabbed her from behind. His hand closed around her upper arm like a manacle and he pulled her behind him towards the door of the room. "You know," he spat angrily as he yanked the door open, "you just DON’T get it!!!"

Jax dragged Chloe down the hallway of the brothel towards the stairs. "I don’t get what?" she managed to sputter, choking down the last of the toast she had been eating.

They were at the top of the stairs when Jax finally stopped. "The rules about being a hostage!" He turned her to face him, gripping her arms with both of his hands tightly. "When you get back to the United States, you watch any of those old Tyrone Power or Errol Flynn movies, or read one of those cheesy bodice-ripper romance novels!" He jabbed an angry finger at her nose. "THOSE women didn’t talk back to their kidnappers! THOSE women weren’t mouthy and disrespectful! THOSE women cowered in fear and followed orders like they were bloody well supposed to!"

Chloe continued to stammer and stutter retorts as Jax pulled her behind him down the stairs. "Well, maybe that’s because those MEN weren’t murderous gunrunners who LIED to them and SCARED them within an inch of their lives!!" Jax halted abruptly and gave her a furious glare to be quiet as they reached the first floor of the brothel. The tavern was mostly empty at that hour of the day but a few patrons looked up at them in curiosity. Jax just shrugged and smiled, making a comment in Spanish that Chloe immediately assumed was an insult to her mental soundness or her feminine hormones.

He dragged her towards the front door of the tavern and Chloe took a deep breath to continue her attack. But just as she opened her mouth to speak, the driving rain hit her in the face. "Eeeeeeeek!"

"Welllllll….." Jax had to shout to make his sarcastic comment heard. "Mother Nature can do something I can’t – get you to SHUT THE H*LL UP!!!" Chloe screamed her anger and frustration but Jax just grabbed her wrist and stomped angrily into the empty street.

Chloe had been out in rainstorms before, but this gave an entirely new meaning to "soaked to the skin." In less than two minutes time, her hair was plastered to her head and her entire body was drenched. Mud in the street squished under her canvas shoes but Jax still managed to keep hold of her hand. The wind-driven rain made it difficult for her to see where they were going, but Jax seemed to have a definite destination in mind.

Jax’s jaw appeared to any by-standers to be set in grim determination, but that was only half-true. The reality was that as he struggled towards Saint Isabel’s, Chloe’s accusations echoed in his brain. {She DOES think you’re a murderer, even though you stopped Faison. You DID scare her – on several occasions. But you HAD to do that. You couldn’t blow your cover as El Pantera just to reassure her. And you DID lie to her. You could have told her about Padre Tomas when you first came ashore – or last night in the tavern.}

Lightning flashed and when the thunder sounded moments later, Jax felt Chloe shudder behind him. {D*mn this assignment!} He dared to glance back over his shoulder at Chloe. Even looking like a drowned rat, she was an extraordinarily beautiful woman. And brave. Even when he had first confronted her on the deck of the Morgana, she had never begged for her life. She had no way of knowing he wasn’t like Faison or Corinthos. Even though she faced probable rape in his bed that first night, she had never been hysterical or wept for her fate. When she had finally broken down the night before, it had been over the deaths of her aunt and uncle. Not her own uncertain future.

A sudden gust of wind almost knocked Jax off his feet. He spun and clutched Chloe to him just as she was about to fall. Fortunately, a narrow alleyway beckoned to their right, and Jax pulled her into it just as the storm raged at its fullest fury. While they were still subject to the drenching downpour, at least they were sheltered from the wind.

Jax held her tightly against his chest, both of them breathing hard from their efforts to fight against the driving rain. He felt her shivering, despite the tropical climate. When he looked down at her just as she raised her chin to do the same, all the guilt he was feeling flooded his face. "You were right," he suddenly blurted out, squinting against the rain.

"What?" Chloe frowned. Between the suddenness of his confession and the roar of the storm, she wasn’t sure she had heard him correctly.

"I’m sorry for lying to you," Jax shouted. Chloe shook her head in a negative fashion to indicate she still couldn’t understand him. As he stared into her eyes, his regret and longing for her came to a boiling point. The realization hit him even harder than the storm – once they got to Saint Isabel’s, Jax would be saying good-bye forever to Chloe Morgan. He would never see her again, and she would never know why he had behaved the way he did. Or who he really was. And he knew with a startling clarity that he couldn’t let it end that way.

Jax leaned down and put his lips next to Chloe’s ear. "I said I was sorry I’ve been lying to you – about a lot of things." He still had to shout the words, even though his nose rubbed against the tender spot where her jawline began. Chloe felt him take a shaky breath. "I’m not what you think I am….."

Chloe pulled away and placed her flat hands against his chest. "Jax…..what are you……."

Jax shook his head briskly and pulled her more tightly against him to silence her. "I couldn’t let you say my name before because it’s my REAL name." Chloe pushed the damp hair back out of her eyes and still frowned in confusion. "I’m……." Jax placed his lips against her ear. "I’m really working undercover for Naval Intelligence."

Chloe’s eyes widened, despite the fact that the rain flowed into them freely. "You’re…….you’re a spy?"

Jax cupped the side of her face, rubbing his thumb over her lips. "I couldn’t let you go on thinking I was one of the bad guys. I had to hear you say my name just once……" His voice was husky with desire even though he was shouting above the thunder. "……to know just once that I was one of the good guys when I kissed you."

Before Chloe could take a breath, Jax’s lips closed over hers. Her head swam with the truth he had revealed to her and his potent masculinity. When he wound his arms around her, Chloe pressed her breasts to his chest, rubbing them against his hard muscles there. The tender abrasion, even though they were both soaked to the bone, caused her nipples to contract and harden.

Jax groaned into Chloe’s mouth when he felt her body react to his kiss. When Chloe echoed his sentiment, he seized the opportunity to snake his tongue past her open lips. She seemed shocked at first, her tongue tentative to respond. But then as he tempted her, flicking his tongue lightly against her teeth, rubbing it sensually against the side of her tongue, Chloe seemed to catch fire. She twined her arms around the back of his neck, slanting her mouth to the side so that he could deepen the kiss.

It was crazy – kissing like there was no tomorrow while a tropical storm raged around them. But in Jax’s mind, there WAS no tomorrow for them. And he needed to have her soft and willing in his arms, completely aware of what he really was. He had to touch her…..just once. When he brought his hand up from her waist to rub the knuckles against the underside of her breast, he felt her sharp intake of breath. When he gently pinched the nipple and rolled it between his first two fingers, Chloe pulled away to bury her head against his shoulder, gasping in pleasure.

"I wanted to tell you the truth so many times……" Jax managed to make himself heard even though he was breathless with desire. Chloe looked up into his eyes, her own dazed with longing. "But I just……it was for your own good……."

Something inside Chloe suddenly snapped. All of the terror of the past two days came back to her, along with memories of Ned completely managing her life. For her own good. "You……..you……." Her chest was still heaving and Jax never saw her right hand pull back until it connected with his left cheek in a stinging slap. "YOU B*STARD!!!!"

Jax’s left hand went to his face reflexively. "YOU……." He sputtered and wiped the rain out of his face. "YOU’RE BLOODY NUTS!!!!"

Chloe Morgan had never slapped a man before in her life. Even when Ned told her about his plan to marry her and carry on a secret affair with Alexis, she had never lost composure like that. Even though Ned deserved it, probably even more than Jax did. Her right arm tingled all the way to her shoulder and her hand cramped with pain, but she’d be d*mned before she let Jax hear her admit it. "You lied to me! I was constantly afraid you were going to rape or kill me, and NOW you tell me you’re some kind of government SPY??!!!"

Jax covered her mouth with his hand, even though it appeared that they were the only humans crazy enough to go out in the middle of a mini-hurricane. "And that’s EXACTLY why I didn’t!! Because I didn’t want you blurting it out somewhere that could get one or BOTH of us killed!!"

"YOU……I……." Chloe was still sputtering like the proverbial wet hen. She made a great show of drawing back her right arm again but this time Jax was prepared. Just as she swung, he put his shoulder to her waist and threw her over like a sack of potatoes. "WHAT THE H*LL ARE YOU DOING WITH ME NOW???!!!"

Jax strode out of the alleyway back into the driving rain. "I’m doing what I should have done yesterday…….I’m taking you straight to Saint Isabel’s!"

Chloe screamed epithets at him but most of them were drowned out by the rolling thunder. She wriggled on his shoulder and pounded his back with her fists. But she was only rewarded with a resounding slap on her backside and an order to quiet down if she didn’t want to land on her head. Jax slipped and slid his way through the muddy streets until he came to the intersection that faced the Mission. When Chloe felt him freeze, she halted her movements, too.

Abruptly, Jax set her on her feet and Chloe spun around, only to gasp in horror at the sight before them. Saint Isabel’s Mission hadn’t weathered the storm well. One entire bell tower was gone, and the roof had been blown off the left side of the small church. Palm fronds littered the plaza in front of the church, and small trees that Tomas had just planted the spring before were uprooted and strewn around like matches. Chloe covered her mouth with her hand and jumped when Jax leaned down and shouted in her ear. "There’s a small brick rectory behind the church. Let’s hope it survived the storm better than the church."

He grasped her hand again and pulled her with him as they daintily picked their way through the debris. Jax breathed easier when he could see the roof of the rectory was intact. The fact that no lights were burning inside didn’t surprise him. With damage that severe, power probably still hadn’t been restored.

Jax led Chloe to a large wooden door in the front of the rectory. He made a fist and pounded on the door, but nobody answered. He pounded again and they waited, but the storm seemed to be intensifying. Jax raised his fist and was about to pound for the third time when he stopped, reconsidered, and lifted his right foot. Responding to a firm kick, the door swung open on its own.

He pushed Chloe ahead of him inside the shelter of the rectory. Once they were both in the hallway, Jax spun around and pushed the door shut to block out the fury of the storm. Chloe wrapped her arms around her shivering body. She could never remember being quite that cold or wet. Jax’s shout of "Tomas!" caused her to jump visibly. He came up behind her and rubbed the sides of her arms with his hands, but there didn’t seem to be anybody else in the small rectory.

Jax put his hands on his hips and prowled around the lobby of the rectory. "Maybe he’s in some kind of storm shelter," Chloe offered hopefully. "Just because the church looked like that, it doesn’t mean that something happened to him……"

"That’s not what I’m afraid of." Chloe realized that Jax’s face looked more disgusted than worried. He turned in a full circle, glancing into some of the side parlors of the rectory. Then he cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted loudly again. "CARLOTTA!!!"

Chloe grabbed the ends of her hair and twisted them, wringing out a steady stream of water. "Who’s that?" She smiled acidly. "Does the Last of the Red Hot Mamas back at the brothel have a cousin who’s seen the light?"

Jax pointed a finger at her in warning. "Don’t go there, Chloe!" he growled. He put his hands on his hips and took a deep breath, about to shout again, when they heard a rustling movement in the hallway. Jax was at Chloe’s side in an instant, shielding her body with his. His hand went to the butt of the pistol in his shoulder holster but a few seconds later, a short, fat native woman appeared. "Carlotta!"

Her face brightened immediately. "Pantera!!!" She waddled forward and her eyes were frantic. "Estas bien? Padre Tomas esta muy preocupado para ti!!"

Jax rushed forward and put his hands on the woman’s shoulders, squeezing them gently. "Estoy muy bien, Carlotta. Muy bien." The woman finally nodded and seemed to relax a little. She eyed Chloe suspiciously but didn’t say a word as Jax drew her attention again. "Donde esta Tomas?"

A rapid-fire conversation in Spanish followed, with Carlotta gesturing grandly. Jax ran his fingers through his hair and Chloe recognized his look of frustration. At least it didn’t seem as though any harm had come to the priest in the storm. He glanced over his shoulder at Chloe and then looked back to Carlotta, issuing a few more terse orders. She nodded and then turned and hustled off to do his bidding.

"So? What did she say?" Chloe asked as Jax turned back to her. "Is Padre Tomas OK?"

Jax grimaced. "He was working for a few days after the storm in some of the local shelters. It hit this part of the island pretty hard, and the people around here don’t exactly live in two-bedroom brick bungalows."

"I figured that out for myself after that little "tour" you gave me yesterday," Chloe replied sarcastically. She shifted from one foot to the other, dripping on the hardwood floors of the rectory. "So where is he?"

"He went to the other side of the island yesterday to talk to Stefan Cassidine about some aid for the storm victims." Jax sighed loudly. "Stefan loaned him one of his helicopters and Tomas went Stateside."

"He’s……he’s gone?" Chloe whispered. "For how long?"

Jax nodded grimly. "To Miami. For however long it takes to publicize the plight of his parishioners and call in some favors for food and money."

"So…….."

"Sooooooo……." Jax let out a long breath. "So we’re stuck with each other. Indefinitely."

To be continued…….

Music credit: "Breathe," written by Holly Lamar and Stephanie Bentley