At Lumpy's Diner, Jax and Avery ate greasy cheeseburgers and perfectly salted fries. The familiar taste was a welcome change for Avery from the Durham restaurants she'd grown accustomed to in college. She mused that no other burger compared to Lumpy's, perhaps because of Old Man Lumpy's habit of smoking over the grill, which seemed to infuse the food with something special. Or maybe her strong feelings of homesickness made the diner more appealing. She didn't want to analyze these feelings too closely, especially with Jax, who always seemed to understand what she was thinking, sitting across from her.

Looking around the diner, Avery observed that little had changed since she'd been gone. The red and black plastic booths and the worn-out bar stools were still there. It seemed the only difference was the rotating waitstaff. Old Man Lumpy was still at the grill, though he moved a bit more slowly than she remembered.

"So, what's been new with you?" Asked Avery around a bite of her burger.

"Nothing much. Working at the garage, causing all sorts of mayhem with the club." he said smiling.

"Mayhem? That doesn't sound good" Avery replied, smiling.

"Oh you know. Gotta live up to that big bad biker reputation I have." Said Jax.

"I hear ya" she said smiling. She didn't have to remind him that the bad-boy act was just a facade; he knew it.

"What about you? What's new with you other than the law firm?"

"Nothing really. I have a lot of work that needs to get down over there before the movers get here with my things in a few days. In fact, that's where I'll be all day tomorrow. I need to at least finish up painting and cleaning the hardwoods." Avery said as she dunked a salty fry into her ketchup.

"Need any help? I can send a few guys over to help you get things done faster." Offered Jax.

"I can't ask you to send me anyone to help Jax."

"Well my offer still stands if you decide you need some help. The new prospect is a natural with a broom and a mop." Said Jax as he smiled at Avery.

"I'll keep that in mind," Avery said, smiling at Jax.

The two of them ate their meal in comfortable silence for a few moments before Jax spoke again.

Jax, with a subtle touch of jealousy, remarked, "What about a boyfriend? A beautiful girl like you must have had to fend off guys throughout college." The slight jealousy in his voice stirred Avery's heart, briefly making her believe that they could rekindle their past.

"Funny. I was too busy with my studying to worry about dating. Once I graduated, I went straight to work. The office I worked for was part of the public defender's office so we stayed quite busy. That didn't allow for much of a life outside of the office." Said Avery. "What about you? Who's the lucky lady in Jax Teller's bed these days?"

"Well, no one at the moment." said Jax, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.

"So why did you need a box of condoms if you were getting laid?" Said Avery, her brain to mouth filter effectively short circuiting when it should have kept that question locked away.

"Better to be prepared than not. Aint that how the Boy Scout motto goes?"

"You were never a Boy Scout, Jax." Said Avery laughing.

"True." Said Jax. "Do you really want to talk about my sex life?"

"Honestly? No. I'd rather not know who you've been sleeping with for the past ten years no more than you would want to know who I've been with." Avery said quietly so the other patrons of the restaurant didn't hear their conversation. She watched as Jax processed what she said. She saw the exact moment that Jax's own little green monster reared its ugly head. The thought of Avery sleeping with another man was clearly a topic that Jax didn't want to consider... ever.

"You're right. It's not something I want to think about." He said as he took a long pull off of his coke.

"Anyways, how have things been?" Said Avery hoping to get back to a lighter topic of conversation.

"Same shit, different day. Mom still rides my ass about everything. Dads hands are getting bad off. Don't know how much longer he's going to be able to ride."

"Damn, Jax. That sucks. You dad loves to ride more than anyone. What's he going to do when his hands won't let him ride anymore?"

"He'll have to step down from the head of the table. A new President will have to be voted in. But if his hands are bad enough that he can't ride, we won't be able to wear the patch either."

"That sucks. Shouldn't he be grandfathered in since he started the club? Shouldn't he get some kind of free pass? I mean, he should be able to make his own rules on this."

"He probably could but you know dad. He won't want any sort of special treatment." said Jax. "Won't want anyone thinking that he's abusing his power as 'First Nine' either."

"Yeah. I can see him getting pretty pissed if someone suggested he be an exception to the rule"

"Yeah."

Before Avery could further the conversation, Jax's phone started ringing loudly from his pocket. She watched as he dragged it out and connected the call. Not being able to hear the other end of the call, she listened to Jax's responses.

"Yeah?"

There was a pause.

"I'm at Lumpy's with Vee."

Another pause.

"She did what! I'm on the way." Said Jax as he slammed the phone shut and jammed it in his pocket while simultaneously dragging his wallet out and throwing some cash on the table.

"Come on. We gotta go." Said Jax as he stood from the bench.

"What? Where? Why? What's wrong, Jax?"

"I'll explain later. Right now, we need to get to St. Thomas." Said Jax as he grabbed Avery by the hand, practically dragged her out of the diner and to his bike.