Page 30 of Break Me

He can’t know.

But something in him is sniffing around the edges. And if Knox Sutter senses even a whisper of danger near his sister, he becomes a weapon. A storm wrapped in leather and fury.

I keep my voice steady. “Positive.”

Knox’s jaw works as he studies me, and for the briefest moment, I think he’s going to say Raven’s name. Call me out. Drag the truth into the light and rip the world apart with it. But then a door slams at the far end of the hall, shattering the tension.

Mouse sticks his head out of his room. “Knox? You still need me in the office?”

Knox doesn’t look away from me when he answers. “In a minute.”

Mouse nods and disappears.

Knox steps one inch closer. Not enough to be a threat, but enough to make it clear that he could be. “Look, I don’t give a damn if you’re tired or pissed or dealing with whatever’s in your head. But I need you sharp. Understand?”

My throat tightens. “I’m sharp.”

“You don’t look it.”

I swallow hard. “It’s been a long week for everyone.”

His eyes flick down my torso to where my ribs are still sore under my shirt and then back up. “Yeah. I remember.”

The fight.

The bruises.

The fucking mess behind the warehouse.

He thinks that’s what’s got me rattled. Good. Let him.

“Get some sleep,” he mutters, finally stepping back. “You’re coiled tight enough to snap.”

Relief slides through me, and I nod. “Yeah.”

Knox grunts and turns toward the office, his boots echoing down the hall.

I watch him go, tension bleeding out of my shoulders one inch at a time.

That was close. Too close.

I push out the back door of the clubhouse and step outside. The gray sky is low and heavy. The kind that smothers the horizon and makes everything feel smaller than it is. I drag in a breath, trying to clear my head.

But it doesn’t help. Because Raven’s scared. Her dad’s suspicious. And I found boot prints in the dirt beside the barn that weren’t mine or hers.

Someone was there.

Someone saw us.

My phone buzzes in my pocket. I pull it out.

Raven: Are you home?

The knot in my chest eases, just a little. But there’s no safety in it. No peace. Only danger wrapped in a girl I would burn the world for.

Me: Yeah. Are you okay?

The dots appear.