Prologue

Axel

I had never been the type of guy you would take home to your parents.

Fuck that.

No, I was the guy you banged in your car while your parents thought you were studying at the library. I didn't have the clean-cut look most parents preferred. Nah, I liked my hair messy, jeans loose, and tattoos large.

I was the leather jacket-wearing, bike-riding, badass who did what he wanted when he wanted.

Hell, if anything, I was a parent's worst nightmare which made me even more irresistible to every female I encountered.

I didn't do relationships and I definitely didn't fall in love. Well, that part is a lie. The purr of a tight Harley Davidson engine would give me a hard-on faster than the desperate girls that dropped their panties in the clubhouse for me. That was my life, my story, and I loved the way I lived.

***

"You do know that the only reason girls like you is because you drive a motorcycle, right?" my brother Drake joked as he watched the blonde I had just screwed in the back of the clubhouse wave my way.

He ran a hand over his thick beard and eyed a new waitress at the clubhouse. Drake was a year older than me and liked to think he could boss me around. But, we both knew no one told me what to do.

"I don't care. We both got a ride of our life." I smirked, as I tip the beer bottle back and take a swig of the cool liquid.

"Hey, I didn't think any of the Raven boys were old enough to drink," Tim laughed, as he walked past where Drake and I were sitting on his way to the bar.

"We aren't." I smiled as I tipped my bottle in his direction.

Tim just shook his head as he saddled up on the leather stool.

We were sitting inside the Twisted Kingdom Clubhouse, the bar, and more importantly, the place where every biker in our small town hung out. I was born and raised in Hollows Cove, a small town nestled just outside of Lexington, Kentucky. As a Raven, I had a reputation to uphold. Even at sixteen, I was expected to be a member of the club and ride whenever needed. We weren't just a club, we were a family. A group of men and women who rode bikes for causes, not just terrorizing town. Sure, at one point, certain members of our club had their fair share of fights and run-ins with the wrong side of the law, but every one went straight once my gramps took over.

Well, at least we are now. When my dad met my mom, she had sworn she would never marry him until he quit the club. But, once a biker, always a biker. So, Dad did the next best thing; he compromised. Dad changed the way of the club and instead of picking fights and running drugs across state lines, they changed to riding for charities, escorting funerals for fallen soldiers and law enforcement officers, and barricading riots. We even started a security business where we drove truckers on their routes. We made sure no one tried to rob them when they were taking a haul.

Drake ran the bar full-time now. He had become our father figure and had given up having a life outside of the club for us. None of us ever took that for granted and we appreciated everything he did for us and the club.

The only brother that didn't work full-time for our security company was Ryder. He was busy being a professional racer and making millions doing it. I was proud of him.

When Mom died of cancer when I was four, Dad swore once again he would continue to uphold the Twisted Kingdom Clubhouse. And he did, at least until he died only a few years later leaving my brothers and myself left to figure out this cold, heartless bitch of a world ourselves .

Falling back to reality, I shook off the memories of my parents. An eruption of cheers echoed from the pool hall just beside the bar. I watched as Frankie lifted up his pool stick high into the air as he sank another striped ball into a corner pocket. Those were the sounds we lived for.

"Dude, you really are an ass," Drake joked, as another girl who had been my conquest last night, slinked past me.

I didn't even look her way, hell I hadn't even seen her until he pointed her out to me. "She should know better, I didn't hook up with a chick more than once."

Laughing, Drake just shook his head. "One of these days Axel, you are going to meet a girl just like Dad did. Fall in love. And, she is going to rock your world." He smiled and shook his head. "Just like Blaze did. I never thought I would see the day when Blaze found love. But you are way more reckless than he ever was with women."

Taking another sip of my beer, I forced a smile. "I sure as hell hope not. Love isn't for me," I stated, even though somewhere deep down in the pits of my dark heart, I secretly hoped he was right. But still, when I saw Blaze with Remy, I realized how happy he was. He was in love with her and honestly, Remy was pretty cool. They had one hell of a ride when Remy's asshole ex-boyfriend came back and tried to mess things up for them. However, Blaze wasn't going to give up on Remy. Somehow they found love and I was happy for them, even if I knew love like theirs just wasn't in the cards for me.