Loving War Read online

  Loving War

  The Sterling Shore Series #4

  Copyright 2014 by C.M. Owens

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without express written permission of the author. This eBook is licensed for your enjoyment only. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people.

  The story in this book is the property of the author, in all media both physical and digital. No one, except the owner of this property, may reproduce, copy or publish in any medium any individual story or part of this novel without the expressed permission of the author of this work.

  They say there’s a thin line between love and hate. With Kode Sterling, that line is very, very thin.

  Chapter 1

  KODE

  Maverick and Corbin are completely wasted, and while I’m entertained, I’m also incredibly annoyed. They’ll end up in jail tonight. No doubt about it.

  I laugh as one of the girls rolls her eyes and walks away from Maverick after whatever he whispers in her ear. He holds his hands up innocently, seeming genuinely confused by her walk-off response.

  He recovers quickly and finds a new girl to stalk, so I return to sipping my beer and scanning the scene. I came out tonight to have fun, and all I’ve done is think about Rain being with Dane. I know he’s the one she wants, but it doesn’t make it any easier to fucking swallow.

  We drove all the way to come to a bar where the women didn’t know the two idiots I call cousins. Their reputations are steadily growing. If they keep screwing over the women in Sterling Shore, not even Rain will be able to save them anymore.

  Rain. Fuck. I have to stop thinking about her, and everything I think about is somehow tied to her. There’s nothing I can say, do, or even think that doesn’t trigger some sort of connection to the girl I chased for too many years. I need to get drunk. And I need a distraction—a female distraction. Someone who doesn’t look the least little bit like the girl who refuses to leave my dreams.

  As the beers keep coming, I get a little drunker. The drunker, the better. It’ll numb my mind.

  My distraction serves itself up on a mouthwatering platter. Dark hair touches a small waist, crossed tan legs are beautifully exposed, and a tight little short dress catches my eyes.

  That’ll fucking do.

  She looks to be alone, which is perfect. That means I won’t need a wingman to distract her friend, and I won’t have to deal with some guy she might be with.

  She’s all the way at the bar, and I’m in the far back. This booth is perfect, because I can view her sexy profile. I can’t see her face from this angle because her hair is in the way, but judging by the way every guy in here keeps glancing her way, trying to gather the courage to approach her, I’m confident she’s going to be just as hot from the front as she is from the side.

  She dismisses the first guy who finally has the balls to take a shot, and I grin. She’s not going to be easy prey. All the better.

  The bartender slides a drink in front of her—from one of her admirers most likely, because she shakes her head to refuse it, and he carries it over to a sulking man. My grin only grows.

  This is going to be fun.

  ***

  TRIA

  Why did I come here? I don’t know. I guess I just wanted to be out of Sterling Shore and away from everyone who knows me. It’s fun to be someone mysterious instead of the girl everyone associates with Dane and Rain.

  I love my sister, and I’m so thankful we’re getting along—finally—but I’d like for someone to talk to me about something other than the beautiful couple. I get it. I really do. They are a dream match, and she wrote an entire book about him. Several, actually. I doubt there’s ever been a romance she wrote where Dane wasn’t the lead role in her mind. But still... It would be nice if someone was genuinely interested in just me.

  “Is this seat taken?” a deep voice asks from beside me.

  I barely turn to see the guy who doesn’t even come close to being my type. Is that... makeup? There is definitely mascara on his lashes. He looks like he spends more time getting ready than I do.

  “It will be when I find someone I want to talk to,” I mutter, refusing to grant him any more of my attention.

  “That’s rude,” he scoffs.

  “It’d be ruder to lead you on, let you waste your money on drinks for me, and then leave with someone I would rather be with. Don’t you think?” I ask, feeling somewhat bitchy. Old habits die hard. I’ve been the Ice Queen for too long, but damn... How can I play nice with wolves?

  He walks away—after several attempts to try a new angle—and I’m left in peace once more. I want someone to be interested in me, not just what I look like naked. Of course... this dress and this bar probably weren’t the best ways to get that sort of interest. In all fairness, I’m probably judging too harshly.

  “I need another Corona with lime on the Sterling tab,” a waitress says, making my breath catch in my throat and my heart stop in its tracks.

  No. Surely not.

  “Which one? I have three. Maverick, Corbin, and... Kode Sterling,” the bartender says, unaware of the three devils’ names he just spoke aloud.

  How in the hell did this happen? How did I come this far away and still end up in the line of fire? No. It has to be a mistake.

  “Kode Sterling. Can you get Missy to take it to him? He’s in the corner booth near the back. It’s time for my break.”

  I cut my eyes in the direction they’ve warned me about, and I peek out around my hair just barely. Sure enough, the devil is there, and he’s staring this way.

  I whip back around, desperately trying to think of a way to get out of here without any of them seeing me. I spot Corbin and Maverick when I turn the other way. They are hounding girls on the dance floor, which is perfect, because I won’t have to worry about either of them noticing me while they’re prowling.

  I wish they’d hurry and get Kode his drink so he’d quit staring this way. With my new, darker locks, he most likely has no clue who I am. I can still get out unscathed.

  Think, Tria. Think escape.

  I stand, but a warm body is suddenly very close behind me, and I stiffen. Please don’t let it be—

  “You can’t possibly be leaving so soon,” a deceptively seductive voice murmurs close to my ear, making me all the more tense as his warm breath fans my cheek and leaves unbidden chills in its wake. Shit. He knows it’s me. “Because it’d be a shame if you left before meeting me.”

  Oh. My. God. You’ve got to be kidding me. Kode Sterling is hitting on me? How much has he had to drink?

  I clear my throat, but I refuse to turn around. “I’m pretty sure I’m not your type,” I say, but my voice sounds off, a little higher than I want it to be.

  “And how would you know that?” he asks, pressing his front closer to my back.

  Oh damn. He’s turned on—turned on because of me. This would be hilarious if I didn’t know him well enough to be certain he’ll punish me for this.

  I turn around, giving him a second to study me, and his eyes widen in horror as his drink sputters from his choking mouth.

  “Probably because you’ve hated me for eleven years,” I say evenly, letting not one droplet of emotion taint my deadpan delivery.

  My eyebrow cocks up as he stumbles backwards, making a fool of himself. I’m definitely going to pay for this. He’s a ruthless son of a bitch. I should enjoy it while it lasts, because the upper hand I have will soon turn into the foundation of a stronger sense hatred.

  “Tria?” he says through a cough, sounding as though he’s disgusted and shocked in the same breath.

  I can’t help it; I stifle my laughter, but my m
ocking smile creeps into place.

  “No,” he says, shaking his head as if he’s seeing things, hating himself in this moment.

  A humiliated and dumbfounded Kode Sterling—love it.

  “Yes,” I say, relishing my ounce of power before he jerks it away.

  “Fuck,” he hisses, staring at his bottle of beer as though it’s the enemy. Then those murderous eyes cut back toward me, and I almost shrivel up. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  No. I won’t cower down to him. You stand up to bullies, right? I won’t cry in the corner tonight. I’ll fight back, damn it.

  “Probably the same thing you’re doing. Having fun in a place where no one was supposed to know me.”

  “Mr. Sterling, your beer,” a waitress says, interrupting us.

  He waves it off, acting as though he’s terrified of what might be in it. “I changed my mind,” he mumbles, setting his almost-finished bottle on the bar.

  I have to get away while I still can.

  “Tria?” a familiar voice says, but unlike the last familiar voice, this one is welcome.

  “Raya,” I say, smiling, so damn grateful she’s here. Kode won’t dare do anything to me in front of her, because he’d be terrified it’d get back to his precious obsession—Rain.

  She looks from me to Kode as if she’s confused. No doubt she’s become painfully aware of our horrible history by now.

  “You two together?” she asks incredulously.

  I laugh, but Kode still seems to be in utter shock.

  “No. You here alone?” I ask, not elaborating on the screwed-up situation.

  “Yeah... but Kade is on his way. He had a meeting with a restaurant that wants to start distributing some of his wines. I told him I’d meet him here.”

  I loop my arm through hers, savoring the saving grace she does not know she’s offering, and start walking away. “I’ll keep you company.”

  ***

  KODE

  Un-fucking-believable. Why am I still watching her? What is wrong with me? Why is my damn dick still hard?

  Ah, hell. Are they really going to play pool?

  Raya seems to be instructing Tria, and I watch with guilty pleasure as Tria leans over the table, offering me a peek closer to her perfectly sculpted ass.

  No. No. Hell no. I cannot be attracted to Tria Noles. Nope. Not happening.

  I glance down at my betraying appendage and curse it for refusing to lose its arousal. Several muffled swears and threats spill through my lips, but the damn thing is still at full attention.

  “Pep talk?” Maverick jokes as he steps beside me, looking at me as though I’ve lost my mind.

  I have lost my mind.

  “No. It’s exactly the opposite,” I growl, wishing it wouldn’t hurt if I punched my own crotch.

  “O...kay... So, I finally found a group of girls who aren’t total prudes. You coming?”

  I glance over at the table full of sexy women that Corbin is already working over, but my eyes involuntarily gravitate toward Tria again. Damn... those legs. Does she have to hold that stick like that?

  I groan and actually slap my own face, which earns an eyebrow raise from Mav.

  “Dude, did you do drugs or something? Because you look like you’re tweaking.”

  I scrub my face and make a silent oath to never drink again. Yeah right. I need something hella-strong right now.

  “Whiskey—straight up,” I say to the bartender.

  “Whiskey? Really? The hard stuff makes you a little... crazy.”

  Maverick is grating on my nerves. I have serious problems right now. Whiskey can’t make me any crazier than I apparently already am if I’m losing my mind over Tria Noles.

  The bartender hands me the whiskey and I toss it back in one sip.

  “Keep them coming.”

  “Dude,” Maverick grumbles, “what the hell happened?”

  Again, my damn traitorous eyes find the brunette I don’t want to want, and my pants get even tighter, which I didn’t think could be possible. She’s leaning over that table again, and all I can picture is fucking her on that damn thing.

  “I’ve lost my damn mind. That’s what happened.”

  He laughs, as though any of this is funny. He wouldn’t be laughing if he was hard as a rock for Tria. He’d be as freaked out as I am.

  “Hey. Didn’t expect to see you two here,” a friendly voice says, and I groan inwardly before making a calculated turn—keeping my erection hidden—and face Kade Colton.

  “Well, I’ll be damned,” Maverick says, grinning. “Did the woman let you off the leash for a night?”

  I pretend I have no knowledge of the fact Raya is here... with Tria.

  “First of all, she doesn’t keep me on a leash, and secondly, I’m actually meeting her here,” he says, letting his smile lift at the very thought of her.

  Like a nasty habit, I glance back over to the pool table, and my jaw clenches when I see a few guys talking to Raya and Tria. Did that fucker really just touch her? I’ll break his damn hand if he does it again.

  What. The hell. Is wrong with me?

  “Damn. I better go get my girl before someone falls in love,” Kade says, grinning bigger when he spots her shooing away the unwanted attention. Tria isn’t shooing away her groper. Why is she even speaking to that son of a bitch?

  “You guys can join us if you want to,” Kade says while walking away.

  “No, we’ve got—”

  “I’ll come,” I say, interrupting Maverick.

  I don’t know what I’m doing, but I can’t just sit back and watch this douche rub his hands all over Tria.

  “Dude!” Maverick calls loudly.

  “Catch up with you later,” I call over my shoulder, rushing my steps.

  Kade tries making idle conversation with me as we close the short distance between us and the girls, but I tune him out. My attention is on one thing, and that’s the jerk whose hands are all over Tria. He doesn’t even know her.

  “Sorry, boys,” Kade says loudly, “this one is mine.”

  Raya’s smile could brighten a room when Kade makes a show of kissing her, but it only briefly distracts me.

  “Kode,” Tria sighs, seeming annoyed with my presence.

  I try to act casual as a waitress brings me a fresh glass of whiskey. “Care to introduce me to your new friend?” I ask, motioning to the animal who is groping her ass now.

  She flinches when he moves in behind her. She doesn’t want him touching her. So why isn’t she just slapping him away? Why the fuck is this eating me alive? I can’t stand to see his hands on her.

  ***

  TRIA

  The only reason I haven’t punched this guy in the nose for his brazen gropes is because Kode Sterling is seconds away from unleashing his wrath. Why else would he come over here?

  “I got us a booth. This place is supposed to have phenomenal burgers,” Raya says, tugging Kade’s hand. “You guys sitting with us?”

  She looks from me to Kode several times, and then she looks at the jerk who is sliding his hand around my waist. I roll my eyes, and Kade pulls Raya toward the booth, deciding not to wait on a response.

  “Okay, that’s enough,” I grumble. That’s all I can take.

  He doesn’t let go. Instead, he tugs me to him tighter. “Let’s get out of here,” he whispers, acting as though he completely missed what I just said.

  “She said enough,” Kode says, keeping his tone strong and a little threatening. “It wasn’t an invitation for more.”

  Oh boy. If he’s helping me out, then it’s only to execute some master plan of humiliation later.

  Considering Kode is easily 6’3, and this guy is a mere 5’10 tops, he backs down from the sandy blonde with a fight in his eyes. At least Kode is scary to everyone—not just me.

  “Thanks,” I mutter when the guy walks off.

  “You shouldn’t be letting them hang all over you if you don’t want them expecting more,” he says through a bored tone, bu
t his jaw clenches as if he’s pissed.

  That makes no sense.

  “I was trying to keep you from possibly humiliating me. It seemed best if I had a guy around. I should have picked someone a little soberer,” I mumble, frowning.

  His right eyebrow raises questioningly, and then his panty-dropping smile comes up as he leans down to get right in my face. “You thought that douche could stop me from doing anything I want to you?”

  Was that... seduction? Surely not. He’s not trying to seduce me. It’s Kode. This is a game.

  I swallow hard, denying my body the right to shiver under his heated gaze. There’s no way he’s looking at me this way. He’s fucking with me. He probably knows I once had a crush, but that was years ago—before he tortured me to damn death and grew an unhealthy obsession for my sister.

  “Let’s play,” he says, making me go on guard.

  A warning? Kode Sterling doesn’t usually warn his victims of his impending attack, and I don’t feel like playing his games.

  “I knew you were going to—”

  “Pool,” he says while setting his glass down on the rim of the pool table, interrupting my would-be rant.

  My mouth opens and closes a few times as he starts chalking one of the pool cues. What is going on?

  “I’d rather not,” I say, backing up. I’m almost worried he’s going to jerk my dress up while I’m bent over the table, just so he can embarrass the hell out of me in front of everyone here. It would be like high school all over again when he pulled my skirt up in the hallway after an argument I had with Rain. People still make fun of my Hello Kitty underwear.

  He smiles a little as his eyes meet mine.

  “It’s not a trick, Tria. It’s just a game of pool.”

  He has to be shit-face drunk right now to even think I’d fall for something like that.

  “What’re you drinking?” he asks.

  I glance down at the fourth glass of vodka I’ve had. I hit the strong stuff once I realized Kode was here.

  “Vodka.”

  He motions for a waitress and orders us two more glasses of our drinks before he walks over to me, making me falter for my footing. I wish he’d stop looking at me like that. Is this my punishment? What game is he playing?