I turned and saw that Link had followed, hands shoved in his pockets, grin tilted.
“I can handle myself,” I said.
“Sure, you can,” he said easily, “but I’m walking you out anyway.”
I almost refused, but the stubborn set of his jaw told me it wasn’t up for debate. At least he wasn’t telling me to go back inside and play nice.
We made it halfway across the gravel when the shadows shifted near the fence. Two men stepped forward, their patches catching the faint glow of the clubhouse sign.
Fangs.
“Well, well,” one drawled. “Dead Knights letting strays wander loose?”
Link stopped, his body slightly angled in front of me. His voice dropped low. “Go back in, Kane. I got this.”
The taller Fang sneered. “Got what? She’s not yours.” His eyes slid to me, slow and deliberate. “But she could be ours.”
My stomach turned, but Link didn’t flinch. “Back off. You don’t want this fight.”
The Fangs laughed, the sound scraping across my nerves. One stepped closer, and then another shadow peeled from the darkness, heavier, sharper, broader shoulders, and fury carved into every line.
Jay.
His hand clamped around my wrist, pulling me back a step behind him. “Touch her,” he said, voice low enough to curdle blood, “and you’ll lose the hands you’re so eager with.”
The taller Fang barked a laugh as he stepped closer. “What’s the matter, Reaper? Don’t feel like sharing Lucy?”
Jay’s hand dropped from my wrist and shot out, fast as a whip. His fist cracked across the Fang’s jaw with a sound that made my teeth ache. The man stumbled back, spitting blood and curses.
The second Fang lunged, but Link cut him off, his shoulder slamming into the man’s ribs. Gravel crunched under boots as the two locked up, snarling like dogs.
I stumbled back a step, heart hammering.
Jay didn’t hesitate. He grabbed the first Fang by his kutte and drove him hard against the fence, chain links rattling under the impact. His voice was a snarl, savage, unrecognizable. “You ever breathe her name again,” he spoke low and menacing, “and I’ll make sure you never breathe at all.”
The Fang’s hands clawed at Jay’s grip, eyes wide, face turning red. For a heartbeat, I wasn’t sure he’d let go.
That was what terrified me most. Even with fear tightening my throat, some buried part of me still felt it—the rush, the relief.
Safe.
With him.
Chapter 16
Reaper
I’d seen Link tail Lucy out the clubhouse; casual, like he was just keeping her company. But I knew better. I knew the way he looked at her, the way his smile lingered too long. My jaw clenched as I pushed up from my chair. I told myself I was only going to warn him off, remind him she wasn’t his to guard, but there was something deeper inside. Something that caused anger to wind around my chest like a rope, pulling tighter with each breath.
Then I stepped outside, saw the Fangs peel out of the shadows, and everything inside me went red.
“Enough!” Riot’s voice cracked across the lot.
“You tell her yet? That you put her brother in the ground?” the Fang snarled at me.
I had him pinned against the fence, chain links groaning under his weight. My fist itched for another swing, one more crack to shut him up, but Riot’s shout bled through the haze. Not a command but a reminder. The brothers were watching. The Fangs were watching. A President didn’t lose control in the yard like some prospect looking to prove his worth.
I shoved the bastard back and turned straight to her.
