Jagged Edge

“But I wanted…” To end it myself. Protect you. Protect everyone.

He comes around the sofa and leans over, puts a hand on my shoulder, looks me in the eye. “You’re strong, little brother. One of the strongest people I know. You may not think so most of the time because everyone’s told you that you’re weak, but you and me, we’ve been through hell and came out alive to tell the tale.”

And just like that, he’s laid me open. “Shun, listen.”

“No, you listen. I’ve tried to do things on my own. I fucked up a thousand times. And you know why? Not because I’m stupid. Not because I’m incapable. But because I was alone. Families shore you up, have your back, support you no matter what. We never had that, you and me. We only had each other, and then we h

ad no one. But now, R... Now we have a family, a big one, and those guys? The Inked Brotherhood and the Damage Boyz, they’ve been through their own hell. They understand. And they’ll help us, you’ll see.”

I nod, not convinced. “If you say so.”

“It’s not all darts and pool and drinks, man. We help each other, always. They’re the reason I landed back on my feet after what our parents pulled. Them, and you.”

He’s looking straight into my eyes, those eyes that look so much like mine. It’s like staring at my reflection, with a difference: in his gaze there’s a confidence that I’m not feeling right now.

“Okay,” I whisper. If Ocean believes we can do this, then I have no choice but to believe it, too. His belief is what saved us both all those years ago in the trailer park—the trust that we can make it. “Fine.”

“Gotta go now.” He glances at his watch. “Kayla’s waiting for me, I promised I’d be there.”

“There where?”

“She’s buying fabrics for the event.”

Right. “Hey, one last thing. This Simon guy… What else did Jesse Lee say about him? What happened?”

“A violent bastard.” Ocean frowns, his hand already on the door handle. “He’s involved with the Mexican mafia, I think. Bad news.”

Fuck, and Jason is somehow involved with him. I have to tell Ocean about Jason, but dammit, not now, not before finding him and talking to him first.

Chapter Twenty

Jason

What the fuck have I done? Going against Simon’s men, against his orders. I’m out of my ever-loving mind.

I had no choice, though. They had Raine.

They’d have let him go, though. Right? Eventually. His dad set him up, but he wouldn’t have him killed.

But I hadn’t known this then. Problem is, I’m not sure Simon cares all that much about keeping me alive. I amuse him, for now, but later? It’s anybody’s guess.

Like, after I get everyone out of town… yeah, what then? Like, how will I extricate little ol’ me from Simon’s clutches? Nobody will rescue me, that much is clear.

I breathe through the panic, and stay low, hiding in unfamiliar places—in alleys and parks I’ve never frequented, in the hopes that Simon’s goons won’t know to look for me there.

Raine’s words hurt. They actually hurt more than the cut on my arm, or the bruises on my body.

And yet I’m glad I ran, leading the thugs far away from him. I just have to hope he made it home safe.

I really have gone batshit. Over a guy, a guy who isn’t sure if he wants me or hates me half the time. Who doesn’t trust me, or feel anything about me except anger.

Then again, that’s just about the description of every guy’s behavior toward me. Looks like it’s me, not them. Figures.

Not lovable, one foster family had written as they returned me to the group home. Too serious. Too troublesome.

Not what we expected.

I rub at the scars on my arms and shiver. Others said it without words, expressing their displeasure with me. Some things I remember, but others… Others are buried deep.