Page 10 of Her Possessive Biker
My spine goes stiff. “I don’t have anything to do with that,” I manage. “Whatever my dad owed—”
“You do now.” Snake’s grip tightens. “Your brother bailed. Last payment never came through. That means you’re up next.”
My heart pounds so hard I feel it in my ears. “Let me go,” I whisper.
Patch-Eye pulls a knife from his coat.
I scream.
It tears out of me raw, louder than I meant it to be, louder than I’ve ever screamed. Snake jerks me closer. His nails dig in. My whole body locks down.
And then—
“Rethink that,” a voice says.
Low. Dangerous.
Familiar.
Reaper.
He steps onto the bridge like something summoned. Like the storm called him back. Leather. Denim. Steel-gray eyes that could cut a man open without moving a muscle.
Snake sneers. “Walk away. Not your business.”
Reaper’s smile is ice. “She is my business. Everything in Jackson Ridge is my business. Let her go.”
Patch-Eye lunges. Reaper’s faster. The knife hits the boards. Patch-Eye hits his knees. Reaper’s boot pins him there while he twists his arm behind his back like it’s nothing.
Snake pulls me tighter. “Back off.”
Reaper moves.
His hand clamps over Snake’s wrist and peels it away like peeling bark from a tree. He shoves me behind him without looking.
“Stay.”
The word is a command.
My back hits the railing. I grip it hard. White-knuckle, death-grip hard.
Snake swings. Reaper takes the hit and doesn’t flinch. Then he drives a fist into Snake’s gut. Snake folds like paper. Reaper yanks him by the collar, slams him into the far rail, and leans in close.
I can’t hear what he says. But Snake goes pale.
Reaper shoves him back and growls, “Crawl away before I change my mind.”
They go. Stumbling. Muttering threats that don’t sound half as scary now. Reaper watches until they vanish into the trees.
Then he turns to me.
“You hurt?”
The sound of his voice nearly buckles my knees. Adrenaline fades fast. My body starts to tremble. He steps closer and reaches, then hesitates. His hand lingers in the air.
I nod.
His arm wraps around me, solid and warm. His chest hits my back, heat seeping through the leather. I lean into it. Can’t help it. He’s the only thing that feels real.
