Crushing Beauty (Harbingers of Sorrow MC): Vegas Titans Series

by Loren, Celia

  “Of course.” He kissed her forehead and made his way to the door. He trusted her more than he had ever trusted another person, and he could finally accept that. The thought warmed his heart. She chose him. Britton loved him.

  He walked out of the room and pulled the door behind him.

  “What the hell are you doing here, David?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Her tone changed the instant Jagger left the room.

  “Oh thank God, I feared you actually had fallen for him.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “You said he blindfolded you. I needed to make sure we’d get the location.”

  “So you got it. Why are you here?” She continued to push for his answer.

  David played with his response. Why did he show up at the warehouse? There was no real reason for him to be there until Britton called the raid. He sighed, knowing the real reason he had come. He had already admitted it.

  “I needed to make sure he was treating you all right.”

  “You’re kidding me right? I thought we talked about this.”

  “And yet you keep showing up with new bruises.”

  “Don’t…I bruise easily. Believe me, I would take him out before he could ever really hurt me.” She wasn’t sure how much truth was in that statement, but at the time, it made sense.

  “I know, but Britton, I couldn’t help it. I was sick with worry.”

  She dropped her head and ran her fingers through her hair. “Here, let me untie you.”

  She pulled at the knot, allowing his wrists to breathe. She rolled the course cords in her hands. It was the same rope Jagger had used to tie her up in the casino hotel room. It had only been a few days, but so much had happened since their first encounter. She looked at her wrists. The bruises were fading and the scrapes had turned to faint markings. Jagger was a jealous man, but only because of his love for her. He had waited so long for her return to him. He had protected her, took care of her family, and killed for her. And the entire time, she had no idea. Of course she loved him. How could she not?

  And now he was changing. He sacrificed his reputation for her. He chose not to punish someone who, a week earlier, he would've undoubtedly killed without a second thought. He did it for her. She quietly laughed at the thought.

  “Is everything all right?”

  “Yes. There you go.” She stood up and tossed the ropes to the floor.

  “Come with me.”

  “What are you talking about? I’m not finished here.” The truth was that she still hadn’t decided what she was going to do. She had all the information she needed to arrest him. Now she was just stalling. Now she had another reason to stall.

  “Britton, I don’t know what’s happening here, but I need to get you out. It’s becoming too much for you.”

  “No it’s not.”

  Either she wasn’t seeing it, or she was hiding something from him. He decided to play the only card he had left. “As your supervisor, I’m calling off the operation.”

  “David. Please, no.” She begged of him. “I’ve been working so hard for years. Please don’t take this away from me.” And yet all she could think was, please don’t take Jagger away from me.

  “I have to. This isn’t working.”

  Britton began to defend herself, but stopped suddenly. If he called it off now, Jagger would be safe from a prison sentence. They wouldn’t have any evidence to hold him. Should she take the high road and let her love live his life? Was she willing to sacrifice everything she had built, all the feelings that had been stirring inside her since she was reintroduced to Jagger Stromm? And what about Dominic?

  If she left now, her brother, sister-in-law and nephew would also be safe. Maybe this was the right decision. It was painful, but Jagger had sacrificed so much for her, now it was her turn to do the same. She found herself thinking that maybe in another ten years their paths will cross again, and they’ll be able to laugh about the time she almost arrested him. If only…

  “Okay.”

  “Then we can drop this?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good. Thank you.” David stepped in, drawn to hug her. He slid his arms under hers and lifted her body to his. He felt soft sobs, and pulled her closer, allowing their cheeks to touch. She was warm, and soft, so soft. Her hair smelled of chestnuts and he forced himself to resist the urge to nip at her ear that delicately lay at his lips. As her cries deepened, she clasped the back of his shirt between her fingers. David felt her nails grace his back, and it sent a chill up his spine, causing him to harden with desire. He lightly kissed her cheek, convincing himself that it was an acceptable act.

  She allowed her tears to flow, only causing her to clutch tighter to his yearning body. He rested another kiss on her cheek, this time inching his way to her lips. She didn’t stop him, only pulled her face away to wipe the tears from her lashes. Their eyes met, and David couldn’t help himself. He flexed his arms and pulled her into him, meeting his mouth to hers. It was his moment of ecstasy, an answer to the dream that had been haunting him since the day in the terrycloth towel.

  Britton quickly pushed him away, shaken from her state of loss. “What are you doing?”

  “I…” he stuttered. “Oh.”

  “David, no.”

  “I thought.”

  Britton turned to run to the door.

  “Britton, wait. I’m sorry.”

  He followed closely behind, meeting her as she threw open the heavy door. She stopped dead in her tracks, and David’s momentum crashed into her.

  “Agent Howard, what are you doing here?” Hank could not hide his shock.

  “Agent Howard?” Jagger questioned, looking to Britton and David. He stared at David; his thoughts clear to everyone around him. His eyes bounced back to Britton.

  Britton saw the realization hit him. His face twisted as though he'd been punched in the gut. It wasn’t his normal display of anger; his jaw wasn't clenched and his muscles weren’t flexed with tension. He was completely defeated, weighed down...Jagger was heartbroken.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  Jagger didn’t know what to think. David was actually Agent David Howard. If Hank knew him, just coming from the FBI, that meant that David was an FBI agent. What did that make Britton? Had she only come back to Vegas and rekindled their relationship to help out her FBI boyfriend? Was she an agent as well?

  Everything was starting to fall into place, especially that gut feeling that had been haunting him since he'd first seen her in the high roller room. He knew he shouldn’t have trusted her. And yet he had. He trusted her with all of his heart. He even let her into his family. What did that mean for his family now?

  “Agent Howard?” His attention was on Britton. “Does that make you?” He couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.

  Britton remained frozen, unable to comprehend what was happening around her. This was not how she wanted Jagger to find out, especially after he had completely opened up to her now. She wanted to run to him, throw her arms around his shoulders, and promise that she would fix everything. She took a step in Jagger’s direction, but he stepped backwards, away from her.

  “Jagger, listen to me…”

  “Are you an FBI agent?”

  “Let me explain.”

  “Are you an FBI agent?” He didn’t seem angry. He was more pleading, praying that he was incorrect.

  “I am.”

  Jagger caught his breath. Everything he had feared was about to take shape. His family was in danger, and it was all because he let his guard down.

  “Am I under arrest?”

  David stepped in. “Are you confessing to anything?” A smile spread across his face. He was enjoying Jagger’s misery.

  Jagger looked at Britton. He had already confessed to everything. What else did they want from him? Britton jumped in, afraid he was about to incriminate himself.

  “We have no evidence against you, so no, we will not be making any arrests at this
time.”

  Jagger stood before them, confused. She had plenty of evidence, including a confession. She knew everything about him. Why was she letting him go? What was her plan?

  He straightened up, forcing himself to appear as the leader he was. “Then if that is all, I would appreciate if you all left my property.” He refused to make eye contact with Britton as she walked by him. He wanted nothing to do with her. She had betrayed him. She was his enemy now.

  Britton wanted to stay, to talk to him. She wanted him to know she had a plan, even if she didn’t. But would he even listen to her? Would he ever agree to see her again? Or was this really it? She took one final glance at his beautiful face. Their eyes met. She had no idea she could ever hurt him so badly.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  Ten Years Ago...

  Jagger walked quietly through the woods, being sure not to break any sticks beneath his feet. He needed to be quiet. He wasn’t supposed to be seeing her, and he knew the consequences if he were caught. Would she be there? Would she be at their secret place? It was early in the morning, just after sunrise. He wondered how long he would have to wait until she arrived, if she arrived at all.

  He made his way closer and closer to the old chimney, checking over his shoulder to ensure he wasn’t being followed. He rounded the stone and looked about. When he found out she was being released from the hospital he'd planted daffodils the night before, hoping she would see that as a sign and wait for him. Jagger widened his gaze as he approached their secret spot, and a slight movement caught his eye. There she was, curled up in the fireplace. He took a closer look at her broken body. What had he done to her? How did he let his own recklessness risk the life of his love?

  He took another step, and she stirred. Jagger stopped. What was he doing here? He couldn’t ask her to put her life on the line again, just to be with him. She was so young, her whole life was ahead of her and she could do so much better than him. He'd gotten himself into some pretty bad stuff. How could he expect her to follow him into the darkness? No. He would protect her as best he could, by staying away. Maybe she would get out of this Hell-hole of a city. Maybe she would be able to put all of her terrible memories behind her and start a new life somewhere else. That was what she deserved.

  “Goodbye Britton, I will always love you.” He whispered to the wind, and turned to leave her forever.

  There was a noise. Who was there? Jagger quickly jumped around; he was ready to fight. There was nothing. Was he hearing things? He blamed his imagination and continued on. No one ever traveled through that patch of woods. Jagger looked up. The sky became black and the ground shook beneath his feet. He started to run.

  Jagger awoke suddenly to the sound of thunder. It didn’t rain often in the desert; he wasn’t used to its roar. He'd been having that same dream every night since he found out that Britton was an FBI agent. He was haunted by his decision to leave her curled up in the fireplace so long ago. If he had come to her, told her everything, then she wouldn’t be after him now. They would have left Nevada together and never looked back. He was to blame. Maybe the person he was running from this whole time was himself.

  It had been a month since he'd last seen Britton, but not a minute had gone by that he hadn’t thought of her. He wanted to see her. He wanted to wake up next to Britton and find out that the entire past four weeks had been a nightmare. But every morning he woke up to his own perpetual nightmare—alone.

  Jagger couldn’t bring himself to go back to the casino. Once the only place he found solace and distraction, it was now too much of a reminder of her. He could picture her behind the blackjack table wearing that slick red dress. He imagined her up against the wall in his suite. He imagined her tied to the bed. He should've kept her there. He shouldn’t have let their relationship go past that night. How had he been so blind?

  It had been a busy month for the Harbingers of Sorrow. They had to find another location for their headquarters. His family was uprooted and scared, because of his foolishness, because he had believed her lies.

  Yet, it wasn’t a busy month for him. Jagger hadn’t left his house but a few times. He couldn’t bring his body to move. He feared he would run into Britton, and she would witness the devastation all over his face. He was sure that would break him.

  Jagger was shaken from his thoughts by a knock at the door. His heart rose, thinking it might be Britton. She hadn’t made any attempts at contacting him, but neither had he. What would he say to her? Would he slam the door in her face, or let her in? He wrapped himself in his robe and made his way toward the sound of the continued knock. He held his breath in anticipation as he opened the door. He turned the knob and swung it open.

  “Hey buddy. How you holding up?”

  His eyes darted over his buddy's shoulder. “Hey Dom—” He didn’t want to seem disappointed, but he was. “You know how I'm doing bro.”

  “Have you heard from her?” Dom asked, hopeful.

  “No.”

  “Have you called her?”

  “I smashed her phone, remember?”

  “Ah, yes, how could I forget?” He teased him.

  Jagger tried to force a smile. He was still mourning.

  “I just came by to tell you that we’re all moved in, and everyone misses you.”

  “Good.”

  “And a few of the guys wanted me to tell you that they can take her out if you want.”

  Jagger became instantly defensive; he could feel his skin warm with anger. “Who did you tell? No one lays a finger on her. You make sure they know that.”

  “Whoa, whoa, I was kidding. But hey, at least I got a reaction out of you.”

  Jagger grumbled and walked to the couch.

  “Jagger, you know how I feel about Brit. I don’t understand what happened.”

  “She betrayed us.”

  “Did she?”

  “Yes.”

  “But you’re still here. No one has been tailing us. She didn’t tell them anything.”

  “She lied to me.”

  “And I’m sure you never lied to her about anything.” Dom knew he was pushing it here.

  Jagger sat down, gazing out his window at the rain. “I didn’t. She knows everything about me. She’s the only one.”

  He scratched his head, not sure how to console his mentor, his friend. “Then go get her back.”

  “I can’t.”

  “I’ve never heard you say that before.” His voice lilted and his eyebrow raised.

  “She works for the FBI. I…well, I do what I do. Those two professions don’t blend well.”

  Dominic paused, interested in Jagger’s reaction to his next suggestion. “What if you didn’t do what you do?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Face it, you have enough money, you don’t need to do this anymore.”

  “I can’t just leave everyone.”

  “Yes you can. They—We will understand. You've done so much for all of us dude.”

  “Is this your way of getting me to step down so you can take over?” Jagger wasn’t sure how he felt about this. He didn’t want Dominic coming out from behind the desk. He wouldn’t be able to keep him safe if that were the case.

  “Actually, I was thinking I’d come with you.” He spoke the words slowly and deliberately. He had been thinking about them for a time, just needed the right moment for the suggestion.

  “What?” The thought never had crossed his mind that Dominic was ready to move on. He was great at his job. “Since when?”

  “You know, I never thought about it, but when Brit was here, she asked me if I ever worried about the danger we put ourselves in. Then, finding out that we had let someone from the FBI get so close to us made me realize how easy it is to slip up. I don’t want Matty to grow up without a father because I’m in prison, you know? And what kind of a role model am I?” He gestured to himself, and then dropped his hands to his sides, defeated. “I don’t know.”

  Dom sat next to Jagger, s
haring his stare. They both leaned back, contemplating their next steps. The rain beat harder, splashing against the window. Jagger wished he were in his cabin, cuddled by the fire with Britton. He pictured her head lying on his chest, and he was combing her hair with his fingers. There was no crime syndicate, and there was no Bureau. There was only the two of them.

  “You can leave, Dom. I’m not stopping you.” Jagger said.

  “I know.”

  “You’ve been like a brother to me.”

  “And I always will be.”

  “So is this it?”

  “No. I’m still going to take care of things until you get back on your feet.” Dom assured him.

  It meant a lot to hear him say that. The club would be able to run without him. Someone would take over. They were a family. They helped each other out.

  “I’m going to go get her.” Jagger declared.

  “You are?”

  “Yeah, I am.”

  Jagger made his way to the foyer, motivated by his resolution. He threw the door open and paused, as a bolt of lightning shot through the sky.

  “Scared of a little rain?” Dominic teased.

  “No.”

  “Going to put on some pants first?”