Prologue
Wren
WORK IS BUSY as helltonight.There’s hardly any time to think or breathe as I maneuver around tables, customers, and dancers.It works out great for me because today I was dumped right before heading into the bar for my shift.My ex-boyfriend doesn’t like the fact that I wouldn’t have sex with him.I’m still a virgin at twenty-three and he did absolutely nothing for me.Everything we did was on his timetable and he thought having sex on the first date three months ago was the right move to make.I wasn’t about to be with him when we were just starting out.So, now I’m alone again as I have been for my entire life.Not that we really spent all that much time together.Seth, my ex, spent most of his time with his friends going out and having a great time acting as if he were single when I was working or at home alone.The only time he called me was when he couldn’t find someone to fuck that night.Yeah, he informed me he’d been cheating on me all three months.I’m glad I was never with him.
I didn’t even cry when Seth broke up with me.Instead, I yelled at him for cheating on me and told him to get the hell out of my apartment.He didn’t like that I wasn’t crying and begging for him to give me another chance or stripping out of my clothes and laying on the floor for him.I was ready to slap the hell out of him because of the names he kept calling me and how he treated me during the three months of my life I wasted on his sorry ass.My roommate, Karmen, laughed her ass off and said he was more than welcome in her bed again anytime he wanted.Yeah, that’s the kind of girl I moved in with because I had no other option but to share an apartment with someone else to afford the rent.
I’m not holding onto my virginity for any particular reason.I don’t believe in waiting until I’m married to have sex for the first time.My feeling is if there’s a mutual attraction between two people and they want to take things that far, they should.Seth just wasn’t the person for me to lose it to.He’s the only boyfriend I’d ever had because I’ve been focusing on working and keeping a roof over my head for the last five years.Seth and I literally ran into one another on the street and he asked for my number.I thought he was cute and nice so I gave it to him.There were no fireworks or butterflies in my stomach when he touched me.His kisses honestly made me sick.The man slobbers like a dog when he kisses, it’s disgusting.Not that I have a lot of experience, but I shouldn’t feel as if I need to wear a bib so my clothes don’t get soaked.
“Wren, pick up!”Carl calls out from behind the bar as I look around for Tanzy, the other waitress scheduled for tonight.She’s nowhere in sight and I’m really not surprised.
Tanzy doesn’t work most of the time when she’s on shift.Her entire reason for working at the bar is to get laid and find the next man to spend all of his money on her.The Hide Out, the bar we work at, isn’t known for bringing in rich clientele.It’s a dive bar that’s only clean when I’m working.I arrive two hours before my shift to wipe down all the tables, clean the floors, and make sure everything is ready for the night ahead of us.It doesn’t matter what I have to do as long as I get paid and make enough money to cover my portion of the bills.
Walking to the bar, I smile at customers as I pass them and quickly dodge the wandering hands trying to grab my chest and ass.See, I don’t even stand five feet tall and have generous curves in the right areas.At least according to the perverts who frequent The Hide Out.I’m the perfect target I guess.It doesn’t help that the uniform we have to wear consists of a halter top and booty shorts or the smallest skirt I’ve ever seen.Tonight I’m wearing the skirt because I have to do laundry.I can wear my sneakers, but the clothes show more of my body than it covers.It took me forever to get comfortable in the clothing because I’ve never been one to show more skin than I cover.Seth hated it and said I was dressing like a slut for everyone but him.Yeah, that’s the kind of asshole I was with.
“This goes to the table in the back.Be careful, Wren.Those men are bikers.I saw their cuts when they walked through the bar.They’re in the Knight’s Rebellion MC.So far they haven’t started any trouble, but they’ve never been in here before.I’ve heard of them around town, but everything I’ve heard is bad news,” Carl warns me and I nod my head in response before grabbing the tray and making my way to the back of the bar.
Carl is like an older brother to me when I’m on shift.We don’t talk or spend time together outside of work, but he’s been my protector from the first night I worked here.Carl’s a big guy and only a year or two older than I am.He works out daily and most of the women who come in want to fuck him.I’ve been asked for his number, been given napkins with women’s numbers, and asked a million questions about him.Carl has a wife and loves her deeply.He would never cheat on her and no one here knows because he won’t allow her to enter the bar.I don’t blame him.So, I take his protection and anything he tells me as the truth.
Keeping my head held high and a fake as hell smile plastered on my face, I take a look at the four men sitting around the table.All of them have muscles, look as if they’d tower over me if we were standing next to one another, and are gorgeous from what I can see.None of them are paying attention to anyone in the bar, but I bet that’s a lie.With the way they seem to absolutely command everyone’s attention, I have a feeling they know where everyone is and what’s going on around them.Always watching their surroundings even if they look as if they’re the most relaxed person in the world.
One man in particular catches my attention.He’s facing the room in front of him and leaning back in his chair.What captures my focus is the smile on his face.It’s genuine and lights his entire face up.I don’t know what’s being said, but I could stand and watch this man smile and laugh all day long and never once get tired of seeing it.I’m guessing one of the other men is telling some kind of story based on the wild gestures he’s making like no one is near them.The closer I get to the table, the more I focus on the smile.I can make out the laugh lines around his mouth as if he laughs every single day without reserve.I haven’t been lucky enough to witness many people who have those laugh lines while I was growing up, but there’s been a few who’s laugh was contagious and I found myself joining in because of who I was around at the time.This man’s laughter is the same as it pulls me in closer to him.
Just before I get up to the table, a man violently stands from his seat, swinging his fist.It catches me near the top of my head and I’m instantly dizzy.I can’t hear what’s being yelled as I drop the tray and glass shatters all over the floor.Shaking my head helps slightly clear the dizziness as pain radiates from where the punch landed.It’s not as bad as it could have been considering how drunk the asshole is, but it still hurts and I know I’ll have a bruise in no time.I’ve always bruised easily.
Before I can say anything to the men fighting across the table from one another, strong arms wrap around my body and lift me from the floor.My back is pressed against a hard chest and the most delicious smell surrounds me.It’s leather, oil, and something woodsy.There’s the faintest hint of alcohol that doesn’t turn my stomach.I let my eyes slide closed as I’m carried through the bar at a rapid pace.
“Gonna take you in the bathroom,” a deep, smooth voice says as I snap my eyes open and see the bathroom door right in front of me.“Need to clean up the cut before it gets infected,” he informs me while kicking the bathroom door shut behind him.One of his arms releases me and I hear the click of the lock sliding in place.
The man sets me on the counter by the sink and I get my first look at him.This guy easily stands over six feet tall and has the build of a swimmer with defined muscles like he got them from working out but also putting in hard work doing manual labor.Even with me sitting on the bathroom counter, I have to tilt my head back to look up at him.His dark brown hair has a slightly reddish tint to it mixed in with streaks of blond.It’s longer on top while the sides and back are shaved close.He’s got the warmest light brown eyes I’ve ever seen even if it appears like he’s staring deep into my soul.They remind me of melted chocolate.
“How are you feelin’?”he asks me while pulling a bandana from his back pocket.
“I’m okay,” I answer as he runs the cloth under the water.When he deems it wet enough, I feel the soft cloth touch my skin and wince slightly from the contact with my injury.
“Sorry about that.I wanna make sure you don’t need stitches.What’s your name?”he questions me as I stare at him and take in the five o’clock shadow covering his face.I’ve always preferred clean shaven men, but this look definitely works on him as I feel butterflies take flight in my stomach with how near he is.I can feel his body heat from the inches that separate us.
“I’m Wren.What’s your name?”I return, looking at the patches on the front of his cut.
“Judge.”
One word.That’s all I get in response.I guess this guy doesn’t feel the need to talk a lot when he’s with someone other than the men in his club.He might have the sexiest smile I’ve ever seen and been laughing with his friends at the table, but it doesn’t seem like he allows himself that luxury very often.There’s a quiet seriousness to him I’m just noticing as he finishes cleaning my face and inspecting the injury.
“You don’t need stitches.You’re gonna have one hell of a bruise.If you get a chance, ice it to keep the swellin’ down,” he says, stepping back slightly and letting his hands drop to rest on my bare thighs.Goosebumps instantly cover my skin from the contact as a warmth I’ve never experienced flows through me from his rough hands.“Need to quit lookin’ at me like that, Love.”
“Looking at you like what?”I ask him, not sure what he’s talking about as my eyes find his staring down at me.
“Like you want me to fuck you in this bathroom,” he states and I feel the blush covering my face while my lips part from the bluntness of his words.
“Um,” I say before my voice drops and I have no words.The thought of this man fucking me doesn’t turn me off.I let my eyes drag down his body and want to reach out to slide my hand under his shirt so I can feel his body.
“Fuck it,” he mumbles before tilting my head up with his pointer finger just before his lips crash into mine.
This man deepens the kiss immediately and dominates me.He explores my mouth as his finger moves from under my chin and I feel his hand slide to the side of my neck.Reaching out, I slide my hand under his tee-shirt and am met with hot, hard skin.I slowly move my hand up, dragging the edge of his shirt with me as I count his abs and feel them ripple beneath my touch.I let my nails drag against his skin as he breaks the kiss and I hear him suck in a breath.
I’m unable to move my eyes from his as he once again rests his hands on my thighs and I feel them slowly slide up my smooth skin creating a fire to burn low in my stomach.His touch sets my body on fire, a new experience for me.His eyes finally drop as his fingers disappear under the short hem of my skirt.My legs are already spread wide to fit his body between them from when he was cleaning my face.I feel him push my panties to the side without removing them.
“Gonna be hard and fast, Love.You sure you want me to fuck you?”he asks me, his voice husky as I feel one of his fingers enter my pussy and my back arches while my head drops back and I can’t stop the moan from escaping.“You’re so fuckin’ wet.Is this all for me?”