AXEL BEAUMONT POV:
"Prez... Blaze Golden is outside..."
Alfred's voice from the walkie-talkie was a rusty knife plunging directly into my chest.
I looked at the woman standing in front of me. Just seconds ago, her soft lips were trembling against mine. Her tears had almost made me lower my defenses. I had actually, for a pathetic, fleeting moment, believed that she wanted to stay.
What a fucking joke.
The sudden change in room decor, the desperate hug, the clumsy kiss... it was all a perfectly timed distraction. She knew her lover was coming to the gate, and she needed to keep me occupied so he wouldn't be shot on sight.
A surge of volcanic, destructive fury erupted in my veins.
I lunged forward and pinned her against the heavy oak door. My large hand wrapped around her delicate throat—not tight enough to choke her, but enough to let her feel the lethal danger she had just awakened.
"You played me," I growled, my face inches from hers. I could see the panic flashing in her beautiful eyes. "You threw yourself at me just to protect that piece of trash? Do you really think I won't kill him?"
"No! Axe, listen to me!" Chloe's eyes widened, her hands grabbing my wrist. "It's not what you think! I didn't know he was coming!"
"Save your breath!" I roared, the pain in my chest morphing into pure cruelty. "I gave you everything! My name, my protection, my fucking heart! And you treat it like dirt for a coward who wouldn't last five seconds in my world!"
I released her throat in disgust, stepping back. I reached for the walkie-talkie on my belt, my thumb hovering over the button. "I'm going to have the Enforcer drag him into the basement. I'll make you watch as I peel his skin off—"
Before I could press the button, Chloe lunged forward, her small hands snatching the walkie-talkie right out of my grip.
"Chloe, give that back before I—"
Chloe pressed the talk button, her eyes locked fiercely onto mine.
When she spoke into the device, her voice wasn't the trembling tone of a spoiled girl. It was cold, sharp, and dripping with venom.
"Alfred, this is the Old Lady," she commanded, her voice echoing clearly through the club's frequency. "Listen to me carefully. I will never see that piece of trash. Tell the Enforcer to throw him in the ditch. If he ever shows his face within a hundred yards of this clubhouse again... shoot him on sight."
Dead silence echoed over the radio.
I stared at her, my mind completely blank.
A few seconds later, Alfred's shocked voice crackled back. "Uhh... copy that, Old Lady. It will be done."
Chloe tossed the walkie-talkie onto the bed. She walked right up to me, tilting her chin up, her chest heaving.
"Is that proof enough for you?" she asked, her voice cracking slightly, revealing the raw emotion beneath her tough facade. "I am Axel Beaumont's wife. I don't want him. I want you."
My heart pounded against my ribs like a jackhammer. Every instinct in my body was screaming to pull her into my arms, to bury my face in her neck, and to never let her go.
But the scars she had left on my soul were too deep. Trust in the Outlaw world wasn't rebuilt with one dramatic order.
I reached out and grabbed the back of her head, my fingers tangling in her soft hair. I pulled her face up and crushed my mouth against hers.
It wasn't a gentle kiss. It was a punishing, aggressive invasion. I plundered her mouth, tasting the tears that had fallen on her lips, marking my territory with savage desperation. She whimpered, her hands clutching my leather cut, her body melting against mine.
God, she tasted like heaven. She was my absolute ruin.
I tore myself away from her, both of us gasping for air. Her lips were swollen, her eyes dazed and completely surrendered to me.
"Words are cheap in our world, Chloe," I whispered hoarsely, my thumb roughly wiping a tear from her cheek. "You want to be my Old Lady? You want to prove you're not playing another game?"
I turned around and grabbed the door handle.
"Then keep proving it."
