Page 51 of Beautiful Obsessions
His voice rose.Rougher now.
Tone didn’t give him an inch.
“I handled it.”
“No,” he snapped.“You buried it.You lied.”
Another step.
I moved before I thought about it—cutting in, placing myself directly in his path.
The room tightened.
Raze’s focus snapped to me, his anger shifting without losing any of its edge.
“Move.”
“No.”
Flat.Final.
His nostrils flared.
“Archie—”
“Don’t.”My voice stayed low.Steady.“Don’t say something you can’t take back, Raze.This isn’t on her.”
His jaw worked, tension sitting hard in his frame.
Behind me, Tone went still.
I could feel it—the heat of her anger, her pride, the way she’d hate that I’d stepped in.
And still… she didn’t tell me to move.
“Archie’s right,” Gianni said.
That almost pulled my attention—but I kept my eyes on Raze as Gianni came to stand beside me.Close.Deliberate.Another body in the space between brother and sister.
Gianni didn’t like me.But he loved her more.
“Tone’s done nothing wrong,” he added.
Raze’s gaze flicked between us, disbelief cutting through his anger for a second—then it vanished, replaced by something darker.
“Don’t fucking tell me how to speak to my sister,” he snapped, his focus locking back onto me.
I didn’t move.He’d asked me to protect her.I would.Even if it meant standing in his way and protecting her from him.
“Shouting at her doesn’t change Machado’s plans,” I said, steady.“It doesn’t stop him.It just puts his mess on her.”
When I finally shifted, just enough to catch her in my peripheral, I found Tone watching me.
Not soft or grateful.She’d never give that away in a room like this.But there was something there—sharp, unguarded for a split second.Then it was gone.
Raze exhaled hard through his nose, like he was holding back the urge to smash something.
He dragged a hand down his face and stepped back.
