Page 15 of Nitro
I braced my hands on the back of the empty chair opposite Edge. “Not saying bury it. I’m saying hold it for two days. Let me see if she trusts me enough to come clean on her own. I want it to be her choice, not a corner we forced her into.” My fingers clenched. “If she’s running from them, forcing it might sendher straight back into the dark. And I’m not losing her to those bastards.”
Kane’s silence was heavier than a gavel. “And if she’s concealing for another reason?”
I didn’t have an answer that would make sense to them. The truth was brutal in its simplicity—I wasn’t letting her go. Not even if her past came wrapped in Skull colors. My silence stretched too long.
Kane saw it. He always did.
His gaze sharpened. “This isn’t just personal shit, Nitro. Broken Skulls makes its club business the second their name’s in the mix.”
“I know,” I admitted, my throat tight. “But I’m telling you, this is different. Give me two days. If she doesn’t talk, I’ll lay it out myself.”
Edge smirked. “You hear that, Kane? Our boy here’s volunteering to take a Broken Skull-shaped bullet for his new flame.”
Kane shot a look at Edge that clearly told him to shut the fuck up. To me, he asked, “You trust your gut?”
“Always.”
He studied me with that leader’s patience that had made men twice my size fold. “You tell me this is serious—the kind of serious where I order a vest the second you walk out of this office—then I’ll give you two days.”
I didn’t blink. “Make the call.”
Edge let out a rough laugh. “Shit! Didn’t even hesitate. Thought he might at least pretend he wasn’t balls deep already.”
I turned the full weight of my stare on him. “Keep talking, Edge. See how fast I wire your bike to fart glitter next race day.”
His grin went wolfish. “Do it. Be the most amazing explosion you've ever made. Just remember, people’ll be wondering why you’re playing with unicorn shit, not why it came outta my ride.”
Even Kane’s mouth twitched at that one. But then his gaze cut back to me—hard. “Two days. That’s it. After that, if she hasn’t told you herself, I put it on the table. Understood?”
“Understood.”
Kane’s expression didn’t change, but something in the room shifted. Weight rebalanced, decisions made.
“Good.” He leaned back, arms still folded. “Now get the fuck out of my office before Edge starts telling me about the raccoon again.”
Edge smirked. “Still my favorite story.”
“Then go tell it to Drift,” Kane ordered, his tone making it clear the meeting was over.
I pushed off the chair, heat buzzing under my skin. The crooked smile broke through this time, sharp as a fuse wire. “You boys better get used to her. She’s not going anywhere.”
Edge called after me as I stalked out. “Neither are the Skulls, brother. Keep your head on a swivel.”
I turned on my heel, heat burning under my skin as I strode toward the door. Then I paused and looked back over my shoulder.
“Not a bullet, Edge,” I growled low. “A fucking warhead. I’ll take it head-on if it means keeping her safe.”
Kane exhaled slowly through his nose. He didn’t smile, but there was something like respect in the weight of his stare as he reached for his phone.
It occurred to me that maybe he understood more than I realized. If it were Savannah involved in this shit, he’d move heaven and earth to make sure she was safe.
Without another word, I nodded at them and stalked out.
If Jana Jennings thought she could keep running, she was about to learn that I didn’t chase unless I planned to catch. And whatever I caught, I fucking kept.
7
NITRO
