Chapter 12
TWELVE
brI
The morning smells like fresh coffee and gasoline, which honestly fits the Iron Reapers Customs vibe perfectly. Blade parks the bike behind the shop, engine growling low until it cuts off.
Switch and Rev are out by the bay doors with their coffees, talking shop. Well, they were talking shop. The second they see me climb off Blade’s bike, the conversation dies. Switch’s eyes narrow. Hard stare engaged. Big brother mode activated.
Blade doesn’t give me the chance to panic about what happens next. He stands, grabs my hand like it’s the easiest thing he’s ever done, and helps me off the bike. His fingers stay laced with mine. Warm. Solid. Intentional.
Rev’s eyebrows go way up. Switch looks like he’s mentally choking Blade out behind the dumpster.
Blade just pulls me tight against his side and drops a kiss to the side of my head. Slow. Possessive. Not subtle even a little. My knees forget the plan was to hold me up.
“Get to work, baby,” Blade murmurs, voice full of last night’s energy. “I’ll come check on you in a bit.”
Every biker within sight hears the baby. I try not to implode.
Blade heads toward the guys like he didn’t just publicly claim me in front of the entire MC mechanics crew.
I swallow and start toward the office, coffee cup in a death grip. My boots click on the concrete way too loud. Switch steps slightly in my path, eyes softening when they land on me instead of Blade.
“You okay?” he asks, low enough only I hear it.
My heart does this dumb swoop thing because even when he’s glaring daggers at Blade, Switch cares. Always has.
“Yeah,” I say. “Good. Really good.”
His gaze flicks past me toward Blade. Blade’s already watching. Switch’s jaw ticks like he’s trying to decide between murder and acceptance.
He settles on a curt nod. “Alright then. If you need anything, you come get me.”
Blade calls out over his shoulder, “She’s good, brother.” Like the conversation is already decided.
Switch shoots him a look that says we’re talking later, then steps aside so I can slip past.
I head into the office, my heartbeat doing full choreography like it’s auditioning for a music video while Blade’s voice echoes in my head, calling me baby, telling me I belong right here, his.
It’s a brand-new day at Iron Reapers Customs, and every single person out there knows exactly who I rode in with.
Ten minutes. That’s all I get of peace before my phone turns into a flashing panic beacon.
Bella: Switch said Blade brought you to work this morning
Bella: With SEX HAIR
Brooke: WHAT IS HAPPENING
Bella: He KISSED YOU in front of the guys
Brooke: BLADE CALLAWAY? KISSED? YOU?
Bella: He’s too old for you Bri
Brooke: Way too old
Bella: He’s not right for you
Brooke: He looks like he eats heartbreak for breakfast
Bella: What if he hurts you
Brooke: I saw a documentary once about men like him
Bella: Brooke, oh my god
Bella: Brianna Marie why didn’t you call me last night
Brooke: Were you even home last night
Bella: Brooke thinks you slept at his house
Brooke: DID YOU
Bella: Answer us
Brooke: ANSWER YOUR SISTERS
They are tag-teaming like two overdramatic wrestling champs.
I type back, trying to stall.
Me: Nothing happened. Chill.
Bella: Liar
Brooke: LIES AND BETRAYAL
Bella: He’s almost forty
Brooke: That is basically ancient
Bella: What could you possibly have in common
Brooke: Do you even like motorcycles that much
Bella: He’s going to break your heart and I’ll have to bury him in the desert
Brooke: I’ll help
Bella: He’s not your type
Brooke: He’s not ANYONE’S type
Bella: You shouldn’t be with someone like him
Brooke: Yeah no disgusting biker romances for you
…oh okay so now I’m offended on multiple levels.
Me: You don’t get to decide who I’m with.
Bella: We’re protecting you
Brooke: From terrible decisions
Bella: That man has trauma written all over him
Brooke: And tattoos of knives
Bella: You deserve someone stable
Brooke: Someone age appropriate
Bella: Someone who doesn’t literally chew on toothpicks and look like he’s considering violence every time he blinks
Brooke: He’s scary hot but still scary
Bella: Exactly
Brooke: What if he’s using you
Bella: Or just bored
Brooke: Or trying to prove something
Bella: Or he’s trying to sleep with you just because you’re the first girl who smiles at him
Brooke: Or because you’re convenient
Okay. Now they’ve done it.
Anger hits fast and hot.
Me: I’m not convenient.
Bella: Bri we didn’t mean it like that
Brooke: We love you and don’t want you hurt
Bella: He’s a bad idea
Brooke: A sexy bad idea but still bad
Me: You haven’t even asked how I feel
Silence. For a whole four seconds.
Bella: Fine. How do you feel
Brooke: About the sexy bad idea
Me: I feel good. I feel happy. Please stop.
Bella: I just don’t want you to cry again
Brooke: Same
Bella: But for real if he hurts you I’m keying his bike
Brooke: And his truck
Bella: And maybe his face
Brooke: But like only one punch because prison sounds miserable
They mean well. They really do but it doesn’t make it hurt any less.
Me: I’m fine. I’m happy. Please stop.
When Bella starts typing again, I slam my phone face-down on the desk before I can see whatever she’s about to say that will make me cry or punch something. My grip is so tight my knuckles ache. Perfect timing for the office door to click open.
Blade steps inside like sin on legs, carrying two coffees and a brown paper bag from the diner across the street. The smell alone is enough to make my heart do gymnastics.
He takes one look at me and his brows pull together, concern hitting instantly. “Who pissed you off?”
There’s no hesitation. No doubt. Blade reads people the way he reads engines. He sees the problem before anyone else hears the knocking.
I paste on a smile and take the coffee he offers. “Nothing. Just my sisters being sisters.”
His jaw ticks. Just once. A tiny flash of protective temper that makes heat crawl up my spine. “You want me to handle it?”
I shake my head fast. “No. I’ve got it.”
He studies me for a beat longer, then leans in and presses a soft kiss to my cheek like he’s claiming the right to fix whatever they broke.
“You let me know if that changes,” he murmurs, fingertips brushing my hip before he steps back. Possessive. Protective. Reckless. And definitely too old for me.
I take a sip of my coffee to hide the smile tugging at my lips. Screw what anyone says. I’m not letting fear steal this from me.
Blade sets the bag on my desk and starts unpacking it like this is his office and I’m his personal responsibility. A breakfast sandwich. A side of hash browns. A tiny container of strawberry jam.
“I’m not hungry,” I lie, because my stomach is currently staging a rebellion.
Blade ignores me with the skill of a man who’s practiced. He unwraps the sandwich, tears it cleanly in half, then holds the first piece to my lips. “I made sure they didn’t put onions on it,” he says, like that’s information he has every right to know.
I blink up at him. “You know I don’t like onions?”
He raises a brow. “I pay attention to everything you like.”
Well. That’s illegal. I reluctantly take a bite because my dignity is weak and breakfast sandwiches are my downfall. It tastes amazing. Like buttery heaven with a side of swooning.
Blade watches me chew like he’s making sure I finish every bite. “Good?”
I nod, swallowing. “Yeah.”
“Eat the rest,” he says, handing me the other half before I can argue.
“I could feed myself,” I grumble.
“You weren’t.” He shrugs one shoulder. “So I am.” He leans one hip against my desk, crossing his arms. He looks relaxed. He looks like he belongs here. Like I belong next to him. “So,” he says, voice low. “You gonna tell me what those sisters of yours said?”
I shove a hash brown in my mouth so I don’t have to answer.
Blade smirks. “They don’t like me, do they?”
Suddenly breathing becomes a challenge. “Blade,” I whisper.
“Yes sweetheart?”
“I really like you.”
His eyes lock on mine like I just gave him the world. His voice drops even lower. “Good. Because I’m not going anywhere.”
He reaches out and wipes a crumb from my lip with his thumb, slow and intimate in a way that makes my pulse annoyingly loud.
Then he taps the desk. “Finish eating. Boss’s orders.”
“You’re not my boss,” I argue.
He grins. “Baby, I’m whatever you need me to be.”
I chew while mentally screaming into the void. “They do know you,” I say once I swallow. “That’s the problem.”
Blade’s expression shifts. Not hurt. Not surprised. Just… knowing.
“They think I’m no good for you,” he says quietly.
I don’t deny it. He already knows the answer.
He looks away for half a second, jaw flexing. “Bella doesn’t trust me with her little sister.” A humorless huff. “Can’t blame her.”
I kick his boot lightly. “Hey. That’s not it.”
He lifts a brow like he’s calling me out without speaking.
“They know you,” I insist, setting the sandwich down. “They’ve seen you protect everyone you care about. They’ve seen you fix cars at midnight without being asked. They’ve seen you drive across town to help Brooke move a couch because Tim was being useless that day.”
He rolls his eyes. “That couch weighed less than the box of pillows she tried to carry.”
“And,” I add, leaning in, “they’ve seen you rip a guy off Switch at that biker rally for grabbing Bella’s arm.”
His eyes flick back to mine at that one.
“They know you’re loyal,” I say. “And fierce. And dangerous if needed.”
A tiny twitch hits the corner of his mouth. “So what’s the problem?”
I exhale. “They also know you like your walls. They know you keep people out. And they don’t want me being one of the people you push away.”
Something changes in his eyes. Slow. Serious. A storm settling into certainty. “I’m never going to push you away,” he says.
The words land like a hand closing around my heart, steady and strong.
“Bri.” His voice drops, rough. Honest. “I’m not letting you go. Not now. Not after last night. Those sisters of yours can come at me with pitchforks if they want. Won’t change a damn thing about how I feel about you.”
There it is. The truth. Bare and unshakeable. I swallow hard, my stupid eyes threatening to do emotional things.
He nods at the food again. “Eat your breakfast. You’re gonna need the energy…for later.”
My face heats. Bold of him to assume. Accurate, but bold.
He heads for the door, then glances back with that half grin that ruins me. “And Bri?”
“Yeah?”
“Tell Bella and Brooke I said hi.” He winks. “And that I’m not scared of them. I’m going to prove to them anyone else who doubts me that I’m the only man for you.”
And then he walks out, leaving me sitting there with breakfast, butterflies, and the dawning realization that my sisters are absolutely going to flip their shit. My sisters know him very well. That’s exactly why they’re terrified. Because if anyone can break my heart…It’s Blade Jameson.