Ivy frowned.“Why?”
King didn’t soften.“Because we always have enemies sniffing around, and because anyone new deserves protection.”
Havoc’s gaze burned into her.“I’ll handle it,” Havoc said.
The meeting wrapped up quickly after that.King slid paperwork across the desk, terms were laid out in blunt, no-nonsense language.A contract was drawn up, start dates discussed, expectations made clear on both sides.Ivy signed her name with steady hands, even as her pulse thudded too loudly in her ears.
When she stood, her legs felt oddly unsteady, like the floor had shifted beneath her without warning.
Havoc rose at the same time and gestured toward the door.
“Come on,” Havoc told her.
He escorted her out without touching her, but his presence crowded her anyway.The walk back through the clubhouse felt different with him beside her, charged in a way that had nothing to do with the low hum of voices or the clink of bottles from the bar.
He didn’t speak or rush her.He simply matched her pace, close enough that she could feel the heat of him, solid and unavoidable.
Every step sharpened her awareness of him.The weight of his gaze.The quiet authority in the way people subtly shifted aside as he passed.She’d been around intimidating men before.None of them had gotten under her skin like this.
Outside, the sun hit her full in the face, too bright after the dim interior.She blinked, dragging in a breath that tasted like dust and gasoline.
“I might’ve bitten off more than I can chew,” she said, the words escaping before she could stop them.
Havoc glanced at her sharply.“What’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?”
The phrase landed harder than it should have.Pretty.Heat flared low in her belly before she could squash it.So he found her attractive.The realization twisted through her nerves, unsettling and heady all at once.
She hesitated, then shrugged, forcing a casualness she didn’t quite feel.
“I didn’t really think about the danger part,” Ivy admitted.
“You still got time to back out,” he said, tone matter of fact.“I can talk to King.”
The offer scraped something raw.She didn’t like the way it sounded, like he already expected her to run.
She stopped walking and turned to face him.“No,” she told him firmly.
One dark brow lifted, slow and questioning.
“I can do the job,” she said firmly, meeting his gaze without flinching.“I won’t run just because it’s risky.”
For a split second, something heated flashed in his eyes.Approval, maybe.Or something darker and far less polite.It made her breath hitch.
“Your call,” he said finally.“But you stick close to me.”
Her pulse skipped, tripping over itself.
“That a promise or a warning?”she asked before she could talk herself out of it.
His mouth curved, slow and dangerous, like he was savoring the moment.
“Depends how you behave,” Havoc answered.
The tension between them snapped tight, electric and undeniable, humming in the air like a live wire.Ivy cleared her throat, suddenly aware of how close they were, how easily she could reach out and touch him.
Instead, she turned and walked back to her car, every step measured.She could feel his gaze on her back, heavy and unyielding, all the way until she reached the driver’s door.She didn’t look back, because Ivy knew he was still watching.
