Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 119011 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 595(@200wpm)___ 476(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119011 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 595(@200wpm)___ 476(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
Read Online Books/Novels: | Straight as a Wheel - Smoke Valley MC |
|---|---|
Author/Writer of Book/Novel: | K.A. Merikan |
| Language: | English |
| ISBN/ ASIN: | B07ZVYGX84 |
| Book Information: | |
“Your secret’s safe with me, Leo Heller. Whatever happens here, nobody will know. Ever. Do you understand?” Zolt. Gay. Player. Predator. Fetish: Straight guys Leo. Straight. Biker. Prey. Fetish: True love Zolt knows what he wants from life--cold hard cash so that he can enjoy an early retirement in the Carribean as rent boys serve him drinks on the beach. Meanwhile, he’s got his pawn shop as a front for illegal operations, and a baseball bat to deal with troublemakers. When it comes to men, Zolt loves the chase, and his favorite, most elusive prey is curious straight guys. He goes out of his way to seduce and devour them. If he can be their first, all the better. His next mark? A biker. And not just any. An outlaw, Leo Heller. Leo’s got his future all figured out. A wife, two to four kids, maybe a dog. If love was as easy as others make it seem, Leo would have been married already. A string of failed relationships leads him to the one person he shouldn’t be crushing on, shouldn’t be admiring, and most definitely shouldn’t be touching. Because a man like Zolt Andorai won’t give Leo the family he wants. Hell, Zolt doesn’t even do boyfriends. But what Zolt does offer is no-strings-attached experimentation, and Leo is only human. After all, if no one ever finds out Leo’s secret, it’s as if it doesn’t exist. One kiss leads to another, lines blur, and before Leo knows it, he’s in over his head. In love. Helpless. ****POSSIBLE SPOILERS: ****Themes: Outlaw motorcycle club, organized crime, homophobia, hurt/comfort, forced proximity, coming out, seduction, forbidden attraction, first love, greed, player, family ties ****Genre: M/M romance, suspense ****Length: ~110,000 words (Standalone novel) ****Steam level: Scorching hot, emotional, explicit scenes ****WARNING: This story contains scenes of violence, offensive language and morally ambiguous characters. | |
| Books by Author: | K.A. Merikan Books |
Chapter 1 - Leo
Leo had never been in love, but that wouldn’t stop him from proposing tonight.
The engagement ring was pretty enough, in an ordinary kind of way—an average ring from an average guy—but if Amanda liked Leo, then she’d appreciate the golden band with three tiny diamonds. After all, it had consumed all of Leo’s savings, and he was dead serious about the question he planned to ask her tonight. Wasn’t a proposal what every woman wanted most after all?
He closed the jewelry box and stuffed it into the pocket of his jeans, taking three deep breaths as he listened to the murmur of voices outside. The massive family reunion of the whole Heller clan would be the perfect opportunity to show Amanda what kind of future lay ahead of her if she accepted him as her future husband.
Leo smiled, glancing at all the family photos on the walls in Dad’s office. Leo, all six of his brothers, his uncle, his cousins, and now even his sister were all members of the Smoke Valley MC. They worked together, partied together, and cared for each other. They had their own support system in Hawk Springs, where jobs weren’t easy to obtain and life could get extremely boring for those who couldn’t come up with their own entertainment.
There was only so long he could hide in the office of the club-owned garage, but he wasn’t ready to face Amanda yet, so he slid his finger between the blinds and created an opening to peek outside. Club members, their families and friends had already gathered for the event, and while it hadn’t reached its peak yet, even child-friendly parties were quite loud and rowdy at the compound.
Old school rock music blasted from the speakers the guys had dragged outside earlier, creating a backdrop for all the conversations going on in groups scattered around the courtyard. Leo’s breath sped up when he didn’t immediately find Amanda’s slender form in the crowd. He hadn’t shared his plans with anyone, and as he looked through the tiny slit between the blinds, isolated from the people who were his family, the irritating thought that kept drilling at the back of his mind since adolescence was back.
Those people would be there for him if he asked, but the truth was that there were things he’d never share with them, and those made him experience moments of such desperate loneliness that company somehow made it worse. His family couldn’t mend the hole in his chest, but maybe Amanda could.
His gaze moved past the barbeque, to his oldest brother, Jack. He’d turned forty last year, but the tattoos covering his body all the way up to the neck made him look younger. A biker through and through, he’d been making bets over girls just a few years back, yet he’d fallen for his now-fiancée so hard he’d forgotten anyone else. Trixie was already sporting a baby bump as a result of his attention.
Leo wanted a family too. He wanted kids, and wanted to fit in. His plan was to find the right woman and follow family tradition. He’d attempted to fulfill it for a few years now, only to face the reality of being unable to fall in love.
He was now approaching thirty and had decided Amanda was the one he wanted to share the rest of his life with. Love would grow over time, and maybe his expectations were too high? The lightning bolt of passion he’d always hoped would hit him from the heavens might not exist.
Something knocked in the hallway next to the office, but before Leo could have checked what it was, the door burst open, and his parents rolled inside in a whirlwind of leather and spandex. He froze when Dad grabbed Mom and sat her on the desk, so absorbed in their kiss he remained unaware of Leo’s presence. Mom wore a sports bra, which exposed her tanned skin, but when Dad grabbed her ass through the colorful yoga pants, Leo cleared his throat.
“Why didn’t you check if the room’s empty?” Leo asked, circling the desk in frustration.
His parents had far too much vigor for their age. Then again, those nine kids hadn’t appeared out of nowhere. He used to think he’d have a relationship like theirs, but as time passed and no girl managed to stir the frantic need his parents seemed to share, he was starting to lose hope it was on the cards for him.
But if fate didn’t want to give him a whirlwind romance, he had to take life by the balls and ensure his future happiness. The ring burned him through denim as he dismissed his parents’ half-assed excuses. Even Mom, who’d hidden her face in the crook of Dad’s neck, seemed to do so to hide a smile, rather than because of embarrassment.