Page 27 of Twisted Steel

“I have a shift tomorrow,” she says.

“No.”

Her eyes flash.“Excuse me?”

“No shift.”

“You don’t get to decide if I go to work.”

“I do when men are climbing through your window.”

“They didn’t climb through my window.You did.”

“He opened it.”

“And you bled on my floor.”

I look down.A few drops stain the worn boards near my boot.I almost apologize but the words stick in my throat like a bone.

Her face shifts.Less fear now.More anger.Anger is easier for both of us.

“Sit,” she says suddenly.

I frown.“What?”

“Sit.Down.”

“No.”

She rises from the closet floor, still holding the heel like she might use it on me.“Your hand is bleeding.”

“I’m fine.”

“I swear to God, if one more man bleeds in front of me and tells me he’s fine, I’m going to commit a felony.”

Despite everything, my mouth almost curves.

She points toward the bed.“Sit, Steel.”

I should refuse.I should put distance between us.Call Savage.Call Saint.Sweep the building.Drag her to the compound where walls and guns and men I trust can stand between her and the Vultures.

Instead, I sit on the edge of her bed.Because she told me to.Because her voice stopped shaking when she had a job to do.Because I am a weak bastard when it comes to this woman, and I’m only starting to understand how dangerous that is.

Harper disappears into the bathroom and returns with a first aid kit.It’s neat, organized, and better stocked than some clinics.She stands between my knees before she seems to realize where she put herself.

Her body goes still and so does mine.

The room changes.Not safe, not calm...Charged.

She’s close enough that I can see the pulse beating in her throat.Close enough that if I lifted one hand, I could touch her hip.Her waist.The soft skin on the inside of her wrist.

I keep my hands open on my thighs, and Harper notices.Her breath catches.

Then she scowls like I did it to annoy her.“Hand,” she orders, and I give it to her.

Her fingers are cool against my skin.Steady now.Professional.She turns my hand palm down, inspecting the torn knuckles, the split skin, the bruising already blooming dark.

“This is from him?”She sounds incredulous.