Page 24 of Wrecker

Her mouth parted, and she blinked, like she hadn’t expected that level of fury from me. “You said you trusted me to help.”

“I do.” I raked a hand through my hair, jaw tight. “But there’s a difference between helping and painting a fucking target on your back.”

“You’re a target now, too,” she snapped, eyes burning. “You think they don’t know we’re working together? I can’t stay here in a locked room forever!”

I breathed through my nose, chest heaving. She wasn’t wrong, but it didn’t matter because reason didn’t live in my body when it came to her.

Only instinct.

Only need.

Only the gut-deep drive tokeep her—safe, whole, fucking mine.

“You don’t get it,” I ground out. “Ican’tlet anything happen to you.”

Her eyes softened, but her voice stayed strong. “Then stop treating me like I’m weak. I’ve survived shit too, Reid. Maybe not combat, but loss, grief, and fear. I can do hard things.”

“You don’t know what I’ll do if I lose you,” I snapped. “You still don’t get it. So let me make it real fucking clear. I haven’t stopped looking at you since I saw your picture, Peyton. You’re not just some case to me. I protect what’s mine. And I’m telling you right now—you’re mine.”

The air between us crackled, and the silence that fell wasn’t calm. It was volatile. That tight, stretched wire between us finally pulled too taut.

Then it snapped.

Before my mind could catch up, my body was moving, and in one stride, I was on her.

My hands gripped her hips as I slammed my mouth down on hers, kissing her hard, almost enough to bruise. She gasped into me, lips parting, and I took what I wanted—biting, tasting, claiming. Her body arched into mine as she clutched my shoulders like she needed something to hold on to.

All that sass and defiance had turned my cock to stone, but when she melted against me in a rush of heat, I was filled with the primal desire to own her. To mark her. To make her mine in every way.

Peyton had no fucking clue the kind of beast she’d just unleashed.

I spun her around, crowding her backward until her knees hit the bed. Then I shoved the laptop aside and gently pressed her onto the mattress, being mindful of her shoulder as I braced myself above her. The shirt she wore—mine—was wrinkled and clinging to her curves.Fucking hell, she was gorgeous.

Her breath came in short pants. Her cheeks were flushed, lips kiss-swollen, and her eyes…they were shimmering, pupils blown so wide they swallowed the violet.

“You wanna know how rough I can be without breakin’ you, baby?” I growled, my voice pure gravel as I dragged the hem of the shirt up her thighs.

Her breath caught. “Y-yes.”

I stilled. My gaze snapped to hers. “Yeah?”

She bobbed her chin in a slight nod, her tongue darting out to wet her lips. “I want you, Reid. I want this. I’m not scared of you.”

Fuck.That undid me like nothing else could.

“I’ll never hurt you,” I rasped, my hand cradling her cheek. “But I will fuck you like I own every inch of you. Because I do.” My touch was gentle, but my tone was firm. “You know it, don’t you?”

She nodded again, voice breathless. “Yes.”

I pressed my forehead to hers. “Tell me you’re mine.”

Her eyes softened, and she whispered, “I’m yours.”

My control fucking shattered.

I gripped the front of the shirt and ripped it open with one brutal tug, the fabric tearing down the middle. Peyton gasped, her chest rising and nipples pebbled from the cool air.

“You’re gonna kill me, baby,” I muttered, dragging my thumb over one perfect peak. “But fuck if I won’t die happy.”

---