Chapter 1

1

ROM

“ G ood thing we’ve cultivated a reputation for being ruthless, badass bikers,” Phantom grumbled as we ambled into the garage at the Silver Saints MC compound.

“Why? Because most of our brothers are pussy-whipped?” I replied dryly.

“Just our brothers?” he sighed. “That why we’re traipsing our asses to the next state for a high school graduation?”

I stopped next to my bike and slipped my aviators off my head, settling them on my nose. “Loyalty,” I grunted. That was a big part of why we were headed to the graduation of two of our old ladies. Grey’s woman, Lorelei, and Cash’s woman, Karina, were best friends who’d both fallen for Silver Saints. And in true SS fashion, while they’d both been eighteen when they were claimed, they were also both knocked up before they graduated from high school.

However, loyalty was only part of the equation. The whole truth was that the old ladies had all the brothers wrapped around their fingers. I loved them all like sisters and hated to disappoint them. I was happy to be there to support Lorelei and Karina.

However, that didn’t stop me from giving the married patches shit for being led around by their dicks.

I had no desire to follow their example. My sisters were giving my parents grandchildren, and I was content enough to be an “uncle” to the ever-growing crowd of munchkins running around the clubhouse. It was very clear that my brothers didn’t support the condom industry.

Phantom shoved his helmet down on his head without comment and climbed onto his hog. I followed suit, and we roared down the highway.

Peace settled inside me as I cut through the wind, feeling almost as if I were flying. Nothing was better than riding my motorcycle, nothing else that made me feel free.

My parents were loving and kind, but my lawyer father and biochemist mother had expected a lot from their children. They had definitely wanted more for their only son than to be in a gang—their words, of course—and the manager of a bar. I’d been an obedient kid and gone to college, earning a degree in business. After that, I was done. I’d been prospecting with the Silver Saints my last two years of school, and shortly after graduation, I’d been made a full member. I’d been managing one of the other SS bars, but Mac—my president—had recently asked me to take over Liquid Silver since it was the largest and busiest.

I loved my job, but being on the road, I was free of everything. I found peace and contentment there.

When we arrived at the event, we parked by all the other motorcycles grouped at one end of the lot. I dismounted, secured my helmet in a saddle bag, then waited for Phantom to join me before we headed toward the entrance we’d been instructed to use.

My gaze swept over our surroundings as we weaved through the cars and landed on a metallic blue MINI Cooper convertible with black racing stripes and MINI Night Jack side scuttles. It was cute, but the car wasn’t what had me freezing in my tracks.

The first thing I saw was a creamy, shapely leg in a sparkly pink stiletto with a bow on the toe, then it was joined by another, this one equally delicious. Long, straight brown hair fell in a curtain as she exited, hiding the rest of her body until she stood beside the vehicle. My lips turned down in a frown when I realized that her flirty black skirt only fell to mid-thigh.

It irritated the shit out of me to know that other men were being given a view of something that was only meant for me. Although, with the way she kept tugging at the hem, I had a feeling she hadn’t realized just how short the skirt was until she got out of the car. It didn’t make me any happier that so much of her sexy legs were on display, but I was slightly mollified that she was uncomfortable with it too.

She bent over and reached into the car, giving me a perfect view of her spectacular ass. Then she stood back up and shut the door, turning toward me and pushing her hair back over her shoulder. My breath caught in my throat as I took in the full view.

My lips curved up when I glanced at her little car again. It fit her, cute and a bit of a contradiction with the racing stripes. Like the prim, pink cardigan she was wearing—that matched her fuck-me heels—but it didn’t hide the fact that she was a fucking knockout, from her silky hair to her generous tits, round hips, and those mouthwatering legs that I was dying to have wrapped around me.

My cock had sprung to attention when I first saw her, but it swelled to the point of pain when I imagined her heels digging into my ass as I pounded into her.

Son of a bitch.

I needed to get myself under control so the bulge in my leathers wasn’t so damn obvious. Blinking a few times, I tried to focus on her face. Big brown eyes surrounded by thick black lashes, enhanced by a subtle shimmer on her lids. Her creamy skin had an adorable sprinkling of freckles over her nose and cheeks. I was gaining some semblance of control over my body until my gaze landed on her pouty, pink-stained lips. Fuck . They immediately inspired thoughts of sliding my dick between them and seeing the ring her lipstick would leave behind.

“Rom? Are you coming?” Phantom asked from a foot away, breaking me out of my lust-filled bubble. His quizzical stare was visible because he’d put his sunglasses on the top of his head.

I glanced back toward my woman—well shit, those fuckers had been right. I’d fallen instantly, as was the usual for Silver Saints—then shook my head at Phantom. “I have to…” My gaze slid over to her once more, and Phantom’s followed. He chuckled and spun on his heel to stroll toward the building.

When I realized that my girl was about to do the same, I made a beeline for her, stepping into her path a few feet from her car. She was looking in another direction and crashed right into me. My hands went to her curvy hips to keep her from falling backward, and her tits pressed against my chest, forcing me to hold back a groan of pleasure.

“Oh! Excuse me!” she said sweetly as she tried to take a step back. “I’m so sorry, I should have been paying attention to where I was going.”

I was sorely tempted to keep her right where she was, but I didn’t want to scare her away. Reluctantly, I let her go. She was probably a little under a foot shorter than me, so her head had to drop back when she looked up at my face, exposing her slender neck. It had been a long time since a woman had sparked any interest in me, but I couldn't recall ever being turned on by a woman’s neck. It seemed everything about this gorgeous creature had quickly become my obsession.

Her lips parted, her expression turning to something akin to awe, and her dark brown eyes heated. My mouth curled up into a satisfied smirk now that I knew she was just as affected by me as I was by her.

“Hello, gorgeous,” I crooned, my voice low and seductive. I forced myself not to grin when her pupils contracted and a tiny tremor shook her body.

“Um…hi.” Her voice was breathless and sexy as hell.

“My fault. Didn’t mean to startle you.” Sure I did. “Not that I’m complaining about running into a beautiful woman. I hope you’ll forgive me…?” I let the sentence hang, hoping she would fill in the blank.

“Layla.”

Damn, even her name made me want to fuck her.

“I’m Rom.” I frowned and, to my surprise, corrected myself. “Roman.”

“Roman,” she repeated. The sound of my name on her lips sent the rest of the blood in my brain rushing straight to my dick. But I was nearly brought to my knees when it also filled me with a peace and contentment that I’d only ever experienced one other place. It seemed impossible that she would make me feel the same freedom and sense of home that I experienced on the back of my bike. Then again, she was obviously meant to be mine, so perhaps that made complete sense.

“Well, beautiful Layla, why don’t you let me make it up to you?”

Her eyes grew big and round, her cheeks bloomed with pink, and her lips formed a little O. Then she blinked a few times before shaking her head.