Flawed Heart: House Of Obsidian - Bella Jewel Page 0,23
to be harder and harder. A night out with a solid amount of alcohol is exactly what I need. It’s not the best way to forget about someone, but it’ll work for a night.
“So your friend Rainer,” I say, trying to make conversation, “he seems important to you?”
Pippa nods with a smile. “He is. He’s such a great guy. You’re going to love him.”
“If he’s a friend of yours . . .” I smile, “he’s a friend of mine.”
We arrive at the bar and both of us split the fare before jumping out. It’s not a massive bar, but it does have a good amount of people milling around. We make our way to the front entrance and a bouncer checks our I.D. before letting us through. There are a lot of people here, but Pippa finds her friends right away. I’ve met them a few times before, but don’t know them all that well. They are great girls, though. All of them are old ladies to a member of the Joker’s Wrath MC.
“Pippa!” her sister Santana cries, leaping up and running over.
Santana is a beautiful dark-haired beauty who kind of reminds me of Pocahontas. She’s got that dark, mysterious beauty. She looks nothing like Pippa, which is strange because they’re sisters. The two girls hug and I wave to Ash and Jaylah, who are sitting at a curved booth.
“Hey there, Belle.” Santana grins at me. “So glad you came.”
“Thanks. I’m pretty happy to be getting out too.” I smile.
“Let’s get a round of drinks,” Santana suggests.
“I’ll get them,” I offer. “What are we all having?”
“Cosmos! Next round is on me!” Santana beams, hugging me before wrapping her arm back around Pippa and leading her to the table.
I walk over to the bar, and squeeze in a gap. There’s a blond girl working one end, and a gorgeous man on the other. I study him and my eyes widen as he nears. He’s hot. Seriously freaking hot. He’s the kind of man that makes you look twice. Not to mention he’s big, muscled and housing some epic tattoos. God, if I wasn’t so in love with Max still I’d definitely be trying to catch a man that looks like that. He’s like a dark god—even the way he moves is graceful and deadly.
“Can I get you a drink?”
I stare at him, not even realizing he’d gotten so close. His eyes are black, just like Max’s. In fact, a good deal of his looks remind me of my husband. His hair is dark, and longer than Max’s. It sits at the base of his neck, curling slightly on the ends. His face is less dangerous, and scarred, but he’s still breathtaking.
“Ah . . .”
“I’ve got customers to serve . . .” he prompts.
“Rainer, have you got the shot glasses?” the blonde calls.
Wait. This is Rainer? This handsome guy is the man Pippa has told me so much about. I know Rainer has been around to our place, but I always seem to miss him.
“You’re Rainer?” I ask, studying him.
His eyes flick back to mine. “Yeah, you are?”
“Belle . . . Pippa’s housemate.”
His eyes widen and then he grins. Good God, he’s even more beautiful when he grins. “Shit, sorry. I know we haven’t met yet.”
He stretches his hand across the bar and I reach over, taking it. He shakes mine gently, even though one of his hands could cover two of mine. I beam. “No, I always miss you. Pippa brought me along tonight.”
“Well, it’s good to meet you, Belle, and I hope you enjoy my bar.”
“I will,” I say, then turn to look over at the girls. “I’ll get a round of Cosmos, please?”
He nods, his eyes flashing over to Pippa. There they go soft. Oh . . . oh my. Rainer loves her. It’s written all over his face. The poor man—it must bother him that she’s with Tyke. He drags his eyes away from her and gets to work making cosmos in front of me. His hands move quickly. He’s a pro, without a doubt.
“So, how long have you been here, Belle?” he asks as he makes the drinks.
“I grew up here, but I’ve come back recently because my mom has terminal cancer.”
He looks up at me. “Shit, I’m sorry.”
I wave a hand. “You don’t need to be sorry, you didn’t do anything.”
He gives me a gorgeous half-grin, and then continues the preparation.
“What about you, did you grow up here?”
His eyes flash with something painful and his jaw