Page 80 of That Girl is Trouble

“This may come as a shock, but not everything I do is about you,” I say steadily. “You have barely crossed my mind, Axe. You have become exactly what I’ve always been to you. Nothing.”

The anger rolling off him makes the air between us thick. Axe’s anger is the kind you can feel. It’s not just the glint in his eyes, the set of his jaw, the flex of his muscles. It’s the looming threat of who he is and what he’s capable of. It’s the kind of anger you want to back away from.

Jesse’s anger was explosive, but predictable. I knew when to step to the side and let him punch a fist through the wall. Axe’s anger is… silent. A long stare. A deep breath. I keep waiting for him to get violent, to break something, but it never comes. And I think maybe that’s scarier. I don’t know what Axe does when he gets really mad, and for the first time in my life, I’m not sure I want to find out what happens when the hard-faced leader of the Soldiers of Sin is pushed a little too far.

I swallow and take a step back, breaking from his grip.

Axe tracks the movement. He lets out another deep breath, drags his palm over his face, and says, “Go to bed, Kat.” He turns on his heel and stalks off towards the stairs.

“You ever get tired of barking out orders at everyone?” I shout at his back.

“You ever get tired of running your mouth?”

“Nope!” I yell.

But he’s already down the stairs, slamming his apartment door just like I slammed mine in his face last night.

Fucking Axel Donovan.

I pick my shit up off the floor and find my room. Like most of the rooms up here, it’s got a single bed pushed tight against the wall, a dresser, a small end table, and a window that faces the parking lot. There’s a small, mostly empty closet and a door leading to a very tiny bathroom I’m sure no one’s cleaned since I lived here. Other than a half-torn poster of a very pretty, very naked woman with her legs spread open on a motorcycle, the walls are bare and painted a toneless white.

I rip down the poster.

Not bothering to change into my sleep shorts, I strip down to my thong, shrug off my bra and pull on a tank top before flipping off the lights and climbing into bed. Sleep doesn’t come easily. An hour passes. I stare at the ceiling. I listen to the low hum of music still playing two floors below me. I drop my focus to the door frequently. It’s unlocked, and I did that on purpose, because despite the argument, I know exactly what’s going to happen.

The knob twists. The door opens.

I push up, squinting through the dark as my heart leaps, but a calm washes over me when I see that it’s him.

The mattress dips under Axe’s weight, and he squeezes in next to me, propping his hands behind his head. He’s shirtless, his jeans sitting low on his hips. The small bed makes it impossible not to touch, and my body flushes with goose bumps every time I accidentally brush up against his skin.

I let out an irritated sigh. “I didn’t say you could come in here.”

He clicks his tongue. “Just shut up, will you?” he says as he pulls me onto his chest. “Couldn’t sleep.”

“Me neither,” I whisper as I dig my head into his chest. It’s easy when we’re like this. Quiet. Squished close together. The warmth of his chest heating my skin. Everything outside this room disappears. Jesse. Triss and Graves. The club. The Garden. The last words he said to me before I left. It doesn’t exist in here. I wrap my arm around him and pull myself tighter against his body.

“You should tell your sister what you been up to.”

“I know.”

“It won’t be as bad as you think.”

“I know,” I say again. “Just… not this weekend, okay? I don’t want to fight with her.”

A painful silence stretches between us. It’s laced with all the shit I can’t figure out how to say.

I take a breath. “What is this? What do you want from me? Other than to play spy for you and the odd lap dance.”

The warm pads of his fingers swirl over my back, drawing patterns. “I want to put my hands on you whenever I want. In front of whoever I want. Preferably without getting a punch in the dick from your big brother.”

I scoff. “Don’t call Graves my big brother.”

Axe chuckles. “Why not? He loves it.”

“Because he’s always in my business.”

“Yeah, Kat. That’s what family is. It’s why your sister’s gonna kick your ass when she finds out you been lyin’ to her.”

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