Page 71 of Property of Fox

“I barely know you, Fox. The second said you said you were a biker, I knew I couldn’t tell you anything about my life without risking my safety and Keira’s. I couldn’t risk your club being allied with Tanks and being taken back there.”

“Do you think I’m like them?" I seethe.

“I don’t know.” She shifts away slightly, pulling her arms tight around herself as though my very presence has become a threat.

“Brea, look at me,” I say, my voice firm yet laced with the softness she needs to hear despite the rage swirling inside me. I don’t want her to feel alone in this, especially not now, but fuck, I don’t know how to feel right now. “I’m not like the Hellions. I’m not like your stepdad. I'd never hurt you or anyone innocent. You’ve got to believe me.”

“I want to, too. God, I want to put my trust in you, but you just cleaned up a murder scene because of me. That is not normal.”

The thought twists my gut, but I can’t let her keep pushing me away. She’s scared to put her trust into anyone, especially another biker. I get it, I really do. Actions over time earn trust. Time we haven’t had together. It takes more than a few days, and murder to be able to put your blind faith into someone.

“You’re right, it’s not, but if I wanted to hurt you, I could have just let him do the job he came to do.”

She looks up at me, her green eyes shimmering with uncertainty. “You didn’t know about my past. That could have changed how you reacted.”

“If I had known your story, that situation would have never happened.” I want to argue, to assure her that I’m on her side, but the truth is murky and tangled. The only thing I know right now is that protecting Brea, and by extension, Keira, from the Hellions is my priority. The second, is figuring out, how the fuck I am going to tell Az and the club that I literally slept with the stepdaughter of the greatest rival. I’ll never live that down. “But now, I do, and it doesn’t change things. It doesn’t change the way I feel about you. Am I pissed you didn’t tell me? Absolutely. Does that change anything for me? No.”

Brea’s breath catches, and I can see the internal battle playing out behind those emerald eyes. “It should change everything, Fox. It’s not fair to you. You deserve better than that.”

“Doesn’t matter what I deserve.” I step closer. “You’re worth the risk, Brea. I won’t let you go through this alone.”

“But—” she starts, but I cut her off by taking her hands in mine. The roughness of my palms against her smooth skin feels electric.

“No ‘buts.’ You need to trust me. And I’m going to figure out how to keep you and Keira safe. We’ll deal with Tank together,” I say, my voice firm as steel, though uncertainty nips at my edges.

She hesitates before nodding slowly, perhaps more to appease me than out of true belief. “Okay,” she whispers, and it’s a fragile promise that fills the space between us.

The moment stretches as our gazes lock, a tension building that threatens to swallow us whole. All the unspoken thingshang heavy in the charged silence: fear, hope, desire—everything teetering on the brink of collapse.

“I need to call Az and let him know what’s going on. After that, we’ll figure out what to do next.”

She nods in agreement. Her arms wrapping around herself like a security blanket. All I want to do is comfort her, but until Az knows, I can’t. Getting lost in her doesn’t fix this situation. I reach for my phone in my pocket, almost reluctant to break the moment, but reality hangs heavy on my shoulders. The first ring barely echoes before Azrael answers.

“What now?”

“I know why the Hellions targeted Brea and Keira. Brea’s stepdad is a Hellion.”

Silence stretches over the line, thick and taut like a cable ready to snap. I can almost hear Azrael’s mind racing, the gears grinding against each other in immediate analysis mode.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” he bursts out.

“I know,” I reply, not trying to soften the blow but rather to ground him in reality. “She escaped from him, and she thinks they tracked her down to Dallas.”

“Or so she says,” he fires back. “I told you to stay away from her. Look what your dick has gotten our club into now, Fox. This could mean all-out war.”

“And that’s why I’m letting you know. I— we’ve got to figure out how to protect them before it escalates any further.” I steal a glance at Brea. A flicker of fear dances behind her eyes, but she’s managing to keep it in check, holding onto what strength she can muster. “They’re not safe here, Az,” I continue, tightening my grip on my phone as if it might siphon off the tension thrumming between us. “If Tank knows where they are, he's going to come after them hard.”

“They’re not our problem, Fox. They’re not patched property.”

“They are to me,” I cut him off, feeling the surge of defiance rise within me. “This is about more than just loyalty to the club. It’s about doing what’s right—for them and for me.”

“Right?” Azrael’s voice spikes with disbelief. “You think it’s right to drag us into a fucking war because you’re too wrapped up in her pussy to see how dangerous this is?”

I swallow my frustration, knowing Az is only looking out for the club. But Brea deserves better than to be treated like collateral damage. “We can’t focus on what they are or aren’t to us when their lives are on the line, man.”

A long pause hangs between us, thick with tension. I wish I could reach through the line and shake some sense into Azrael, but I know he’s being rational in a world that often demands anything but.

“If we take this on,” he finally replies, his tone calmer yet still laced with caution, “it’ll change everything. For us, for them, and for Asher. Are you ready to shoulder that burden?”

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