by J. A. Owenby
Love & Seduction
A Love & Ruin Series Standalone Novel
J.A. Owenby
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
A note from the author:
Also by J.A. Owenby
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
1
Pain ricocheted through me as my back slammed against the unforgiving wall of my parents’ living room. The stench of cigarettes and worn leather assaulted my nose, and my heartbeat thundered wildly in my ears.
“Are you alone?” His husky voice held a hint of familiarity that I couldn’t pinpoint, but it was difficult to focus while being attacked.
I nodded since his hand was clamped tightly over my mouth. A shiver crept down my spine as I attempted to identify the man who had just burst through the front door of my house. The black knit mask hid his facial features, except for his relentlessly cold grey eyes.
“Saul knows what you did. You need to leave. It’s not safe here for you any longer.” Saul Simpson was the leader of the motorcycle club, Sons of Chaos, in Portland, Oregon. Nine months ago, he’d arranged for me to be kidnapped and shoved into an industrial container with a hundred other women. He had decided I wasn’t worthy of dating Tucker Newton, his nephew, but it went a lot deeper than that.
The man’s hand slowly slipped away from my lips, and I sucked in a much-needed breath like it might be my last.
“What? What are you talking about?” My chin trembled with the question. Saul had deemed me a risk to the club. I was an outsider who attracted unwanted attention to the illegal activity that was taking place. Drugs and sex trafficking, to name a few. Once he’d made up his mind, he hired a few men to remove me. He’d thought it would silence me forever.
“It doesn’t matter, but you have to get out of here. I was sent to make sure you leave before Saul sends for you. If the Sons of Chaos found out anyone warned you, Saul will suspect Tucker first.”
My brows furrowed together. “Tucker sent you? Who are you?”
His slender fingers wrapped around my wrist, and he pulled me roughly toward my bedroom. Fear clenched my heart, and my stomach plummeted with each footstep. Was he going to hurt me? Horrifying thoughts ran rampant in my mind while he forced me to follow him.
The door slammed closed behind me, and he tugged the mask off, smoothing down his scruffy brown hair with the palm of his hand.
“Coen! What the hell?” My hands landed on my hips, and my eyes narrowed into thin slits while I mentally prepared to tear him a new one for terrifying me shitless.
“I’m sorry I scared you, but I couldn’t take any chances of someone identifying me, especially any of the club members. Pissed wouldn’t even begin to describe how they’d feel about my visit. But … Saul is furious, and I can’t stand the idea of anything else happening to you.” His expressive eyes assessed me as he rubbed the dark hair on his stubbled chin. “Promise me you’ll be out of here by tomorrow.” His tone carried a gentleness I’d not heard from him before.
Coen Ballard was Tucker’s gorgeous cousin and a member of the club, but he didn’t willingly participate in the majority of the shit that went down there. He was a good guy for the most part.
In two quick strides, he pinned me against the bedroom door with his muscular body. I inhaled sharply while he firmly cupped my chin, taking charge once again. He tilted my head to the side, his breath teasing the sensitive place on my neck while he spoke.
“You know how I feel about you. Although you belonged to Tucker … that night … I’ve never forgotten it.”
Heat pooled low in my belly. Forget that it wasn’t the time for a quickie. I’d not been with anyone in months. My body craved something other than my vibrator, and I remembered how well Coen had delivered.
On a rainy winter evening at the club, Tucker had demanded Coen and I have sex while he watched. Even though I was Tucker’s girlfriend, I was passed around sometimes. It all depended on Tucker’s mood. It wasn’t just me, though. All of the girls were considered the MC’s property. And sometimes the shared sex was fun. Others times, not so much. If the guy was hot and was mid-thirties or younger, I happily participated. But the club wasn’t made up of a lot of young men, which left the old dudes. The mere thought of their slimy paws touching my body turned my stomach, but I’d given up my right to have a choice the minute I committed to Tucker. I just hadn’t known it. In an attempt to help me through the forced activities, Tucker would offer me a line of coke before we got started, and I’d always indulged.
What I hadn’t understood when Tucker and I first began dating was that there was no way out once I’d committed to our relationship. I couldn’t just break up with him because I wanted to. It was all his decision. He owned me. A relationship with a biker in the Sons of Chaos was serious shit, but I’d been too naïve to know any better. By the time I’d figured things out, it was too late. I was trapped, and the only way out was to piss Tucker off so bad he broke up with me. It hadn’t happened that way, though. Not exactly, anyway.
Coen pressed his waist against my stomach, forcing my thoughts to the present, and a soft whimper slipped between my slightly parted lips.
“Did anyone see you come over?” I asked, sliding my hand underneath his worn Ozzy Osbourne T-shirt and lightly dragging my manicured Ford-blue nails over his skin. His ab muscles flexed beneath my touch. Coen had always taken good care of himself. Well, he drank too much and smoked when he was super stressed out, but his stomach and bare ass had been used to bounce quarters off at parties. Every inch of his body was tight. Hard.
His gloved hand slid along my throat, then tightened for a brief second before he released me.
“No.” He pulled at the fingers of his gloves with his teeth. His eyes darkened with desire while he tossed them on the floor. “I’m sorry Tucker found you first.” He sank to his knees and pushed my denim mini skirt up my bare thighs.
Oh, God, I needed this. My core throbbed with heat already. Just a quickie, then I would pack and run for my life.
In one quick movement, Coen tore off my blue lace thong and propped my right leg over his shoulder. His soft lips brushed against the inside of my leg, and I grabbed the doorknob for balance. Bright headlights suddenly beamed through my window, and I grimaced.
“Dammit. My parents are home early.”
Coen stood, and I hurried to pull my skirt down.
“Go out the window.” I motioned toward the one on the opposite side of the room
that would allow him to sneak away more quickly. Frantic, I gave his six-two frame a solid shove.
Coen scurried across the room, tripping over my orange-and-pink flip flops I had discarded on the floor earlier in the evening. “Shit.” He caught his fall on the corner of my refurbished dresser. A perfume bottle clattered to the wood floor and rocked back and forth.
“Shhh. My room is next to the front porch Mom and Dad are currently standing on. If they find you here, shit’s going to hit the fan.”
Not only would I be in a world of hurt from my parents, but if they found out who he was, the word might get back to the Sons of Chaos. I didn’t want him to get hurt. The guilt would wreck me.
The front door squeaked open.
“Hurry!” I whisper-yelled, smacking him on the butt.
Coen spun around and stilled. His wistful eyes bored into mine, and silence descended over us.
“Promise me, Claire. Promise me you’ll get the hell out of Portland, no later than tomorrow.”
I peered up at him. “I swear. Thank you, Coen. Thank you for helping me.” Gratitude flooded me. I understood what Coen had risked by showing up here tonight. His life.
“I wish it could have been more, and I know this is goodbye.” He pulled me against him, and his mouth crashed down on mine. “Take care of yourself, Claire.” He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat as his gaze lingered on me one last time.
“Claire?” Mom’s voice came through my door.
“Hang on a second. I’m changing.” I motioned for him to hurry.
“Okay, honey. I just wanted to let you know we’re home a little early.”
Coen quietly removed the screen and tossed one long leg, then the other, over the windowsill. My heart sank while I watched him sprint across our freshly mowed yard and down the darkened street. I closed the window and squeezed my eyes shut. I’d stayed under the radar for months. How had Saul figured it out? Had someone told him? Regardless, shit had just gotten real. This time, Saul wouldn’t let me live.
I grabbed my cell phone off my nightstand and tapped the number of the one person I knew that could help me. I sank down on my bed as it began to ring in my ear.
“Hey, sis,” Sutton said on the other end of the line.
“Hey!” A ball of emotion worked its way into my throat, and I struggled to maintain a neutral tone. If Sutton knew what had just happened, she would freak out, then she would ask a million questions that I didn’t have answers to yet. Hell, I still hadn’t had the chance to process what just happened with Coen. One thing I did know—I couldn’t ever tell anyone. It would place them in too much danger.
It was time to put on my game face and pretend my parents were the problem. I hated myself for it because they were amazing, but if we were all going to survive, it had to be done. Not to mention, the guilt over my shit decision to date Tucker had nearly consumed me. My bad choice had rippled into the lives of everyone I loved and put them through hell when I’d gone missing for several days. It had been hard on my family, and I didn’t want to drag them into another fucked-up mess because of my poor choices in guys. If I weren’t around, Saul would leave them alone. At least I hoped he would.
“I was just thinking about you. I’m glad you called,” Sutton said.
“Yeah?” Were her Spidey senses kicking in? “Well, I … I just need my sister right now.”
“Claire, what’s the matter?” Sutton’s tone grew serious. “I’m always here for you.”
“I know. It’s why I called. I have to get out of here.” At least I’d started with the truth. “Help me,” I pleaded with her. “I’m suffocating.” I flopped back on my bed and massaged my forehead with my fingers as a hot-pink pillow plopped onto the top of my head. Irritated, I tossed it to the other side of the room and glared at it while the memories of Coen’s body pressed against mine flooded my senses. “Besides, this bedroom looks like Barney puked all over the walls. They’re still purple from when I was twelve. I’m not a little girl anymore. I’m almost twenty. I’ve lived through more shit than most people see in an entire lifetime. Mom and Dad are breathing down my neck every time I turn around.”
“Do you want me to talk to them for you?” Sutton asked.
I imagined her flipping her blonde hair behind her shoulder while her perfectly manicured brows pinched together deep in thought. One of Sutton’s strengths was solving problems, which meant I might have a chance of staying alive.
“No. I don’t want to hurt them. I know they’re scared to let me out of their sight after the kidnapping, and I get it … but I’ve got to try and find some semblance of normalcy again.” I released a heavy sigh, Coen’s words whispering through my mind. Saul knew. A prickle of fear rippled through me.
“Claire, I’ll do anything to help you, and so will Pierce. Let me talk to him. I’d love to bring you up to Spokane. We have plenty of space in the new house, and you can stay with us for as long you want. Plus, I miss my baby sister.”
“I miss you, too.” There were eight years between Sutton and me, but we were super close. It hadn’t always been that way, though. When I was in junior high, she’d already moved out of our parents’ home to attend college. She’d visited all the time, but we had drifted apart. After I’d nearly been sold into slavery last year, we’d connected on a much deeper level.
“When can you talk to Pierce?” I asked, nibbling on my thumbnail and attempting to relieve my overloaded nerves. Minutes before I would have been shipped overseas to be sold as a sex slave to the highest bidder, the FBI had located us, thanks to the help of my brother-in-law, Pierce Westbrook.
“He just walked in the door. Let me see how he’s doing, and I’ll talk to him tonight. I’ll have an answer for you tomorrow, but I don’t think it will be a problem. He’s always loved you.”
“He’s a good guy.” I wondered if I would ever be capable of having a relationship like Sutton and Pierce had. Pierce treated her as though she had a crown on her head, but she returned the royal treatment. Their love for each other was breathtaking.
Some days, there was a flicker of hope inside me that I would have someone love me so deeply, but I recognized I was most likely too broken.
“And Claire.” Sutton hesitated. “If you stay with us, the bodyguards are off-limits.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. Had Vaughn said anything about what had happened at her wedding? My heart hammered at the mere thought of him. After too much champagne, I’d propositioned him at Sutton’s wedding, but he had stopped me seconds after I slid his cock into my mouth. If he hadn’t explained that, in his opinion, I deserved better than a quick fuck, he would have shattered what little self-esteem I was clinging to.
“I know. And, Sutton … please don’t ask any questions, but …” I blew out a big breath and rubbed my throbbing forehead with the palm of my hand. “I have to be out of here by tomorrow. Whether it’s up there with you or not.”
“Claire,” Sutton whispered, her voice full of concern and compassion. “Whatever is going on, we’ll figure it out. I’ll call you back in an hour.”
A tear slipped down my cheek. “Thank you.” I ended the call and threw the phone as hard as I could across the room. It left a small dent in my closet door and clattered to the wood floor. “Fuck my life.” I’d panicked and said more than I’d meant to. Sutton was off-the-charts smart, and with one sentence, I’d made her suspect the Sons of Chaos were involved with my plea to leave in such a hurry.
I hopped off the bed, stepped into a G-string from the pile of clean clothes on the floor, and stood in front of my full-length mirror that hung on the back of my bedroom door. Dark half-moons shadowed my dull green eyes. I pulled my long blonde hair up into a ponytail, then rummaged around in my dresser for a hairband. Within a few minutes, I appeared a little less stressed and strolled out of my bedroom as though my life were absolutely perfect. And for the moment, it was, because I was about to spend some time with Mom and Dad before my world changed once again.
>
2
The next afternoon, a gentle wind blew as Mom, Dad, and I strolled toward the tarmac where we would meet my sister. She and Pierce had sold the last plane and purchased a new one, and I was eager to see it.
I’d been inside the Portland airport before, but this was only the second time I’d flown anywhere. Emotions rushed through me, and I struggled to keep a tight lid on them. I was elated to see Sutton yet terrified of what might happen if Saul hunted me down. Shutting the fear into a deep, dark hole fast and hard, I reminded myself that Sutton and Pierce owned a highly successful security company. Bodyguards would surround me on a daily basis. Or at least that was what I hoped.
The late-May sunshine beat down on my face and filled the crystal-blue sky. Pushing my sunglasses up on my nose, I sucked in a breath of fresh air and smoothed my teal shirt with my hand. Mom had suggested I travel in comfortable clothing, so I had opted for a pair of my favorite cut-offs and a tank top.
I wondered if I would love Spokane as much as Portland. Sutton had reminded me it was a quick flight back anytime I wanted to see Multnomah Falls or kayak. What she didn’t know was that I had no intention of returning. Ever. Not even to visit my parents. A heavy weight crushed my chest. How had my life gone so terribly sideways?
I stifled a yawn while we waited for Sutton to exit her plane. Coen’s words had bombarded my thoughts all night, and I’d not slept at all. Finally, I’d grabbed my blanket and curled up on the couch in the living room. My fingers had wrapped around the handle of the knife Tucker had given me when we were dating. It was sharp and would cut deep if I ever had to use it. I’d tucked it beneath my pillow, assuring myself I’d protect Mom and Dad if Saul broke into our house. Since I was positioned between my parent’s bedroom and the front door, I would hear if anyone tried to break in again.