Love Betrayal

Prologue

River

As I step inside the bar, I tap the back pocket of my dark jeans to make sure I remembered to bring my wallet in from the car. My cousin Romeo and I will no doubt fight to pay the tab, like we always do, as if who pays is the biggest alpha in the room.

As I follow Romeo in, I see who he stops to talk to.

“I’m...fuck.” I stop abruptly.

Julianna Callisto.

The daughter of the president of the Angels Motorcycle Club, someone who is supposed to be Romeo’s sworn enemy.

“Nice to meet you, Fuck,” Julianna replies with attitude, and Romeo laughs. It’s a familiar laugh, and I feel like I’ve missed a fucking chapter in what is going on right now. He’s into her.

“This is River,” he says, nodding to me.

Julianna is beautiful. Blonde hair. Full lips. And a body men would fall over themselves for. Clearly Romeo has already fallen.

Yet my eyes are instantly drawn to the woman next to her. The one I don’t know. I keep my sight on her, like a lion with its prey. “And who are you?”

“I’m Bella,” she says, her sweet voice making my cock twitch. With her long dark hair and almond-shaped gray eyes, she is one of the most strikingly beautiful women I’ve ever seen.

“You’re not a Callisto, are you?” I ask, hoping that getting her into my bed isn’t going to come with a fuck load of trouble.

“Sorry to disappoint,” she replies, with a sexy smirk.

“Ah, fuck,” I mutter, but still find myself sitting down next to her. Next to us, Romeo is getting awfully close to Julianna, so I guess this is how tonight is playing out. We may be cousins, but he’s also my best friend and I always have his back. Even when he’s making questionable choices. “Guess we are all making bad decisions tonight. Can I buy you a drink?”

She smiles.

When she looks away, I lean closer and breathe in the scent of her hair. Vanilla with a hint of cinnamon.

And in that moment, I know that it’s all over for me.

It’s not long before Romeo and Julianna leave the bar, and I’m wondering what the fuck he is thinking, but also distracted by the woman next to me. Bella had pulled Julianna aside before they left, probably asking her what the fuck she is doing, like a good friend, but they left together anyway. Romeo makes me promise to get Bella home safely, and of course I would have done that anyway. I might be capable of many things, some of them would be illegal in the eyes of the law, but hurting a woman isn’t one of them. Besides, her hair smells so good and I want to bury my face in it.

Among other places.

I have one drink, she has two. I know that I can be a little intense at times, so I try to be relaxed so she can be comfortable.

“So, tell me about yourself, River?” she asks, tilting her head to the side as she studies me. A lock of her dark hair falls across her soft cheek, and I have to stop myself from gently pushing it away.

“What would you like to know?” I ask, arching my brow. Talking about myself isn’t my strong suit. In fact, the less people know, the better. Which doesn’t help much for dating, probably why I’ve done nothing but fuck around most of my life. Sex is easy. Letting someone know the real you? That shit is scary. I don’t like to be vulnerable, and I don’t like to have any weaknesses.

So I tell people what they want to hear. It works for me.

“Your connection to Romeo?” she asks, keeping her voice low.

“He’s my cousin. Our mothers are sisters. You and Julianna?”

“Also cousins,” she replies, plump lips kicking up at the corners. “On my mother’s side.”

“The famous all-girl curse,” I say, referencing how the Angels are all females with no males being born to take on the MC’s legacy.

“I’d say it’s a blessing, not a curse. Too much testosterone and Lord knows what would happen,” she teases.

I’m a member of the Devils Motorcycle Club and her family are the Angels. We’re supposed to be enemies, but if I’m being honest, we’ve been peacefully coexisting since the Angels started. And the hierarchy within our clubs is similar to a monarchy, the presidency passing to the oldest male son of the president. Problem with the Angels is they have no male heirs, so it passes to the husband of the eldest daughter. For the Angels, that is Julianna.

And my dear cousin Romeo? He’s the heir to the Devils. Hence the problem.

But Bella and I are just the cousins. Part of the court, so to speak.

“Why haven’t I seen you around before?” I ask, studying her through narrowed eyes. I would have remembered.

She shrugs and takes a sip of her margarita. “I work a lot and keep to myself. Plus we don’t usually hang out on the same side of town as the Devils MC.”

True. Vegas may seem small, but it’s a pretty big area.

“Where do you work?” I ask, tapping my ring-covered fingers on the bar.

“I’m a property manager.”

Of course she is. The Callistos are the masters of the local real estate industry, and own a lot of land and properties. They are never short on money.

“What about you?” she asks, giving me a once-over. “What do you do for the club?”

I wonder what she sees. Does she see the well-dressed, put-together guy, or the real man underneath?

The one with blood on his hands, and a dark soul.

After glancing down at my hands quickly, I look back up at her. “I’m Romeo’s right-hand man” is all I say, smiling to distract her and then changing the subject. “Can I get you another drink, or something to eat?”

“I’m okay for now, thank you,” she replies, licking the salt from her lips. “So you’re the Devils version of Victor?”

I’m the Devils MC enforcer. I do whatever I need to. I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty, and most of the time I’d rather it be me than anyone else.

Why?

The shit that affects other people doesn’t affect me. I don’t lose sleep over what I’ve had to do to earn my place in the club.

And I’ve heard about Victor, the man that’s rumored to be taking over the Angels MC by marrying Julianna. He’s not the man I’d want my future daughter marrying, that’s for sure.

I laugh. “No, Bella. I am nothing like Victor.”

She leans forward and smiles, then mouths the word Good.

Unable to stop myself, I lift my fingers to touch her cheek. “Do you want to get out of here?”

She arches her brow. “What have you got in mind?”

“I don’t know. Let’s go on an adventure. And don’t worry, I will get you home safely. You can trust me.”

I stand up and offer her my hand. She hesitates but takes it, and I lead her out of the bar and onto the back of my bike. It’s not lost on me that she’s the first woman I’ve ever let ride on the back of my bike, besides my sister. If my brother, Matthew, were here right now, he’d be giving me a lot of shit about it.

As we ride away, I feel a rush of adrenaline, and it has nothing to do with riding. Usually riding brings me a level of freedom that I can’t get anywhere else. It’s my church. It’s where I exorcise my demons and repent for my sins. But with Bella’s arms around me, it’s a whole new experience.

She holds on to my leather jacket, and there is so much I want to know about her. But it’s followed by a pang of sympathy. There’s nothing good that I could give her or bring to her world.

I’m pain and torture and darkness. I can’t show her that part of me. But I’m selfish enough to continue on.

I take her to my favorite place. It’s a quiet hidden spot outside Vegas, near Lake Mead, with a stunning view. It’s dark outside, but the moon on the lake gives us enough light to see where we are.

As I remove my jacket, then shirt, and start to undo my pants, her jaw drops open. “You’re going in?”

I grin, flashing my teeth at her. “Yes, it’s good for you. People do those ice baths all the time now—a little cold water isn’t going to do anything.”

She looks down at the water, her black heels so out of place. “What’s in there?”

“Nothing that will hurt you,” I reply, kicking off my leather boots and removing my jeans. “You better close your eyes right about now because I’m about to go in.”

Instead of looking away, she boldly looks down at my cock, as if unable to help herself. I cover myself with my hands, smirking as I step into the water. It’s cold, but not freezing.

It’s refreshing.

I duck underneath and stand up and turn around to face her, only to hear some shuffling and a big splash as she jumps in.

Laughing, I wipe the water from my face and lower myself so I’m covered up to my neck. She does the same. I can see her black bra straps, so I know she’s not fully nude like myself.

“The water actually isn’t too bad,” she murmurs with a smile. “I haven’t done anything like this since I was a kid.”

Her makeup is running a little, but I’ve never seen a woman look more beautiful. I don’t even know what it is about her. I don’t really know her either. I was once upon a time sleeping with this spiritual woman, who told me about how sometimes you can be drawn to someone’s energy, and aura.

I had no fucking idea what she was talking about.

Until now.

I’m very drawn to Bella.

There’s a drop of water on her plump lips and I want to lick it off, but I don’t want to scare her away. Instead I pull her closer to me. She laughs under her breath, and then says, “Race you to the other side,” before diving underneath and disappearing into the abyss.

I appreciate the moment for a second, before diving in after her.

She wins, of course.

I lose track of how long we spend together in the lake, but when I get her out of the water she has the biggest smile on her face, and she looks so alive.

I’m happy I got to bring that out of her.

Or maybe she’s always like this?

But at the end of the night when I drop her home, I realize that she could win every little game between us, and I wouldn’t care.

Because being with her would trump all of that.

Fuck.