Page 60 of Jamie

“There’s something there, a connection, to the old me.” The one who’d thrived on chaos and fire, who hadn’t just hurt people, but had killed a man and never looked back until the guilt had finally found its teeth. That raw, violent part of me that used to claw its way tothe surface when I felt cornered, helpless, or angry. I saw it in Jamie—in the way he chased destruction because it was the only thing that made sense in a senseless world. I recognized the need to prove something. To punish. To be the one in control of the pain.

And Caleb saw it too. “You promised us you could lock those parts of you down,” he said, the weight in his voice impossible to ignore. “The whole point of the team is to find legitimate ways to take the bad guys down.”

I nodded once, throat tight. “I know.”

And for the first time, Caleb didn’t argue. He drank his coffee and kept watch, as if daring me to figure it out before the next storm hit.

Sonya exhaled sharply, her voice lower now. “I don’t even get why it has to be him,” she muttered.

“Jamie?” I asked, and she nodded. “There’s something about him, and it scares the shit out of me because I can’t explain why.”

Caleb let out a breath, and Levi stared hard at the floor, as if he didn’t want to admit he had an opinion. But the silence was confirmation enough. No one could quite understand why Jamie got under my skin. He just did.

Sonya shook her head and stood, brushing herpalms on her jeans as if she was ridding herself of something she couldn’t name. “I need air.”

Caleb followed her out without another word.

Levi hesitated at the threshold. Then turned back to me, his voice low. “You want to be with him, that’s your business, unless it takes down the team with you. Don’t be stupid, Killian.”

“I would never endanger any of you?—”

“But that is what you’re doing.”

He pulled the door shut, and I stared at the wood, hurt, worried, and stressed.

Now what?

Well, fuck, that would be Rio turning up in reception and demanding to see me. I buzzed him up.

This wasn’t going to go well.

TWENTY-ONE

Jamie

I didn’t knowhow long I was out, but the first thing I was aware of, after the gentle kissing, was shouting. My eyes flew open as the door slammed into the wall so hard the frame shuddered.

“Are you fucking kidding me, Jamie!” Rio’s voice, raw and furious, filled the room a second before he appeared, stalking in like a storm, with fists clenched and chest heaving. Killian was right behind him, equally tense, voice low but no less angry.

“Rio—”

“You’re supposed to come tomewhen you want to burn. You promised me. After what happened in Stockton—we pulled those people out—you fucking cried, Jamie. You told me never again. Youpromisedme.”

“Listen—”

“Youactedwithout a plan, backup, or even telling me. You lit a match without knowing what you’d burn down… again—and look at you!”

Guilt turned to anger, and I pushed myself upright, wincing as the sheet slipped down and the burn pulled tight along my ribs. Killian reacted as if he might steady me, but I waved him off with a sharp shake of my head.

“Can you give us a few minutes?” I asked him, voice rough.

Killian didn’t move right away. He crowded Rio, eyes flashing, the air crackling between them like they were seconds from violence—two big guys locked in a silent war of will and territory.

“Watch your tone with him,” Killian said, quiet and dangerous.

“Or what?” Rio snapped. “You think I’m scared of some slick-suited manipulator who thinks he knows what’s best for Jamie?”

“Back off,” Killian growled. “Show him some fucking respect.”

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