Page 2 of Love Gamble

“You tell me,” Romeo replies, a muscle working in his jaw. “This is our turf, and you need to respect that. If you’re hanging around for a bit, cool. If you’re passing through, even better.”

Gio nods slowly. “We don’t want any trouble, we’re just travelling around the country, trying to find our place.”

“It’s not here,” River says from behind his president. “As long as you know that...”

“Well then,” Gio says, hands up in the air, laughing. He turns back to his group, and we all share a glance.

Yeah, I don’t have a good feeling about them.

But if they came here for trouble, that’s what they’re going to get.

The men leave before we do, and as soon as they exit the bar, Romeo turns to me. “Looks like we found your first job,” he says, eyes still on the exit. “We need to handle this situation carefully.”

I nod, knowing they want me to prove myself worthy of stepping up in the ranks of the MC.

“And we don’t want to put the women in danger,” River adds, looking me in the eye. “Or anyone you may care about.”

Like his sister.

Yeah, I know what he’s telling me.

I have a job to do, and I need to do it without endangering Corey.

Just another thing to add onto the list of reasons why I should fucking stay away from her.

A blonde woman approaches me, smiling and biting her lower lip.

Maybe this is just the distraction I need.

Chapter Two

Corey

I throw my paintbrush down, frustrated that I can’t quite get the color of his eyes right. Just another thing that’s not going my way.

And it’s not like I have anyone to complain to. I’ve always been a bit of a lone wolf. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I have my brother, River, and his girlfriend, Bella. And I have a whole motorcycle club at my back, the Devils and Angels MC, and not many people can say that. But we were born into this life and the club is all that I’ve ever known.

But genuine connections outside of the MC world?

Yeah, I’m lacking in those.

My father died a few years back, and I do have another older half brother out there somewhere, but I don’t have anything to do with Tatum. I also don’t have a close relationship with my mother. I haven’t since my other brother, Matthew, died.

Maybe she wishes it was me who was murdered instead of him. We’ve never had that typical mother-daughter relationship, though, even when I was growing up. She was a different mother to her sons than she was to me. She was always more invested in their lives and what they were doing. She kept a distance with me. I don’t know why.

I dropped out of college a few months ago, putting my business and marketing degree on hold to enjoy a slower lifestyle. I’ve been painting, reading, and writing. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that it most likely has to do with my brother’s murder in front of me and my kidnapping a while ago. We were in a bar parking lot when my brother Matthew was beaten to death in front of me. And if that wasn’t traumatizing enough, later that year I was held hostage by Rosalind, my friend’s sister, when I stopped to help her on the side of the road, and used as bait so the MC would come after me. I haven’t told anyone, but I have anxiety about leaving the clubhouse. I do it because I recognize that I cannot become a hermit, but that doesn’t mean I like it.

I’ve also been avoiding asking myself what the hell I intend to do with my life. I don’t know, I just feel a little lost right now. And maybe that’s normal for my age. I’m just about to turn twenty.

Or maybe I’m just a fucking mess.

I think it might be a mix of both.

But I do know that I have the time to figure it out, and I will.

I always do.

Damon, one of the members of the former Angels MC, almost bumps into me at the front door, which I just opened to head outside for some fresh air. He steps aside for me to exit first so he can enter. He has a big box in his hands and dips his head at me, eyes trailing over me as he passes. “Corey.”

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