Guts & Glory: Ryder (In the Shadows Security Book 2)

by Jeanne St. James

  That didn’t sound like a problem to him. “Darlin’, I’m gonna jog up those steps, carrying my woman, and then I’m gonna fuck her so long and so hard that everyone in that parkin’ lot and in that pawn shop hears her.”

  “I’m not sure Ace will appreciate that.”

  “Will you?”

  “Fuck yes,” she whispered, her hand fisted in his shirt, holding onto him tightly.

  He hoped she’d never let go. And he hoped to always be there for her to hold on to.

  “Well then, darlin’, that’s what I’m gonna do because you’re the only one that matters to me.”

  “For now?”

  “For forever.”

  Turn the page to read the 1st chapter in book 3 of the In the Shadows Security series:

  Guts & Glory: Hunter

  Guts & Glory: Hunter

  Turn the page for a sneak peek of

  Guts & Glory: Hunter

  (In the Shadows Security, Book 3)

  Sneak peak of Guts & Glory: Hunter (Unedited)

  Chapter One

  Hunter stared at the older man on the other side of the thick, shatter-proof glass.

  Orange wasn’t his color.

  He had deep lines on his face, especially around his greyish-blue eyes, and the bottom half was covered in a long salt-and-pepper beard that matched his shaggy hair.

  Rocky.

  Jewel, Diamond and Jag’s father. Diesel and Slade’s “father-in-law.”

  Doing life without parole in SCI Greene for a couple counts of murder. One of those “victims” being Slade’s father, Buzz.

  And Buzz was the reason Hunter was here sitting on the other side of that fucking glass. Because Slade asked Hunter’s boss, Diesel, to track down a possible sibling. One no one knew about, but Rocky might have info on.

  Maybe.

  But maybe not.

  The man giving him the eyeball might not know shit. All this could’ve been a play to see his grandchildren. Because that had been the “payment” to get Rocky to talk. He wanted Diamond and Slade to bring their son, Hudson, and Diesel and a currently pregnant Jewel to bring their girls, Violet and Indigo, to a max security prison to meet their granddaddy.

  They all agreed to it, though reluctantly, since a state correctional institution wasn’t any place young children should be.

  Now, Rocky sat back in his bolted down metal chair, his heavily tattooed arms crossed over his chest, looking like the cat who ate the goddamn canary.

  And still, Hunter had shit to go on.

  Good thing a thick glass partition and a cinder block wall separated them. Because, at this very moment, Hunter felt like gutting Rocky from dick to throat just like the man did to Buzz.

  Not that Buzz hadn’t deserved it. He most certainly fucking did.

  But Hunter was weary of this wild goose chase that began because of a few words Rocky had uttered to Crow many months ago. And then Crow had mentioned it to his Dirty Angels MC brother, Slade.

  Who let that info fester.

  Now the DAMC member wanted to see if what Buzz had uttered in his last few moments of life was true. That Slade had another brother out there somewhere, another product from Buzz’s sperm.

  And if he existed, Slade wanted to find him.

  Why? Hunter couldn’t care less. He was getting paid to find this long-lost brother, so that was what he would do.

  If it didn’t kill him first.

  He was good at what he did, which was finding people. But this case, this job, was enough for him to throw in the towel and go get a fucking job cleaning toilets.

  And he hated cleaning toilets.

  That’s why he hired a cleaning lady to come in twice a month to do just that.

  But here he sat—again—in a small, enclosed room trying to get Rocky to shake some memory loose that might help him with this “case.”

  Because what he had to go on was basically bullshit.

  No fucking name.

  No fucking birthdate.

  Fucking nothing.

  All Rocky said to Crow was Buzz mentioned a son during his last moments of breathing and he didn’t think that son was Slade. Why Rocky thought that, Hunter didn’t fucking know.

  But one thing Hunter wasn’t, was a quitter.

  He was going to do his fucking best to find this possible second offspring that Buzz put on this Earth.

  The only thing Hunter had was Buzz’s real name and the fact that Buzz knew that he had a son. Buzz didn’t know Slade existed. At least, Slade didn’t think so.

  Hunter scrubbed a hand over his hair, surprised he had any left to do so. Which really pissed him off, because he wanted to keep it. Especially since there was nothing better than a woman pulling on his hair when he was eating her pussy and making her come.

  Something Rocky hadn’t gotten to do in decades.

  Poor bastard.

  That was one good reason Hunter needed to stay on this side of the glass instead of being on Rocky’s side. The other was, he hated tight spaces. And prison was full of them.

  “Let me just say, I’m fucking glad I’m on this side instead of that one,” Hunter muttered.

  “An’ lemme just say, with the shit you probably done in your life, you should be sittin’ on this fuckin’ side. You probably done more than I ever fuckin’ did. Just got fuckin’ lucky, boy.”

  True fucking that.

  But that’s where he and Rocky were different. While, yes, he would have fucking trussed Buzz up like a freshly killed deer and gutted him, Hunter would’ve gotten rid of all the evidence and not gotten caught.

  Rocky and Doc were out of their fucking minds when they wreaked havoc on the rival MC, the Shadow Warriors, so they weren’t careful when they did it.

  “You talk to Doc?” Hunter asked him.

  “Yep.”

  Hunter sighed when Rocky didn’t continue. “And?”

  “Doc’s got old timer’s. Doesn’t remember shit.”

  Hunter knew about the diagnosis. Diesel had visited his grandfather hoping to get some details about Buzz from him. Unfortunately, D had no luck and said Doc had no memory of even what he ate for breakfast. Even so, Hunter was hoping that the old man would have an occasional sliver of clarity. Apparently not.

  “Got nothing to go on,” Hunter grumbled.

  “An’ why the fuck should I care?” Rocky asked, frowning. “Why the fuck do you want to dig up a spawn of a fuckin’ animal who not only raped Crow’s momma but slit her throat an’ her ol’ man’s, too?”

  “’Cause Slade wants to find this spawn.”

  “Bad enough that my baby’s fuckin’ the other one an’ havin’ his babies.”

  Hunter fought the roll of his eyes. “Your baby is happy.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah. And you ever think if you’d been smarter about what you did, you never would’ve been in here and you could’ve protected your baby from what that motherfucker Pierce did to her?”

  Hunter’s jaw flexed. Fuck. He hadn’t meant for that last part to slip out. But his patience with this whole thing was down to nil. He needed to get his temper in check. And it wasn’t helping that the walls were closing in within the room he was sitting.

  “What the fuck you talkin’ ‘bout?”

  Damn. Rocky didn’t know. That made his mistake even worse.

  Now the man was leaning forward in his chair, both palms pressed to the glass, his jaw hard, and his gray-blue eyes intense. “What’d Pierce do to Diamond?”

  Hunter pressed his lips flat. It wasn’t his story to tell. And, fuck him, his slip of the tongue was pulling them off track.

  “You would know if your ass wasn’t in the joint.”

  Rocky slammed his hands against the glass and growled, “So, you’re gonna tell me, asshole.”

  “I’ll think about it if you answer some of my questions you’ve been avoiding.”

  “Shit I’ve been avoidin’ ’cause there are fuckin’ ears in here.” His eyes flipped to the speaker and
back.

  “Yeah, so? It’s not like you’re ever gonna see the light of fucking day again, Rocky. That ship has sailed. You won’t even get that chance with good behavior because since you’ve been in here, you’ve been in the hole more often than not.”

  Rocky sat back and shrugged. “I can meditate in the hole.”

  Hunter snorted. “Yeah, I bet.”

  Rocky studied him for a long moment. “You gonna tell me if I answer your fuckin’ questions?”

  “You were supposed to answer my questions because you got to see your fucking grandbabies.”

  Rocky shrugged again. “Payment terms have changed.”

  Fucking motherfucker.

  “You don’t answer my fucking questions, I will make sure you never see your fucking grandkids again. You got me? All I gotta do is tell Diesel how you’re fucking over one of his club brothers by going back on your word. And don’t forget, that brother you’re fucking over is your baby’s ol’ man. Think Diamond’s gonna be happy about that?”

  Rocky scowled but Hunter could see his wheels turning.

  And turning.

  Finally, the older man gave a single sharp nod.

  Right. Time to get to business. “Where’d you kill Buzz?”

  “In an abandoned building right outside of Shadow Valley.”

  “Where’d you find his ass?”

  “Outside of Uniontown.”

  “That where he was living?”

  “Yeah. Some dumpy trailer park.”

  “You know who he was living with?”

  Rocky shrugged. “Nope.”

  “He mentioned a son, you sure he didn’t say a name?”

  “That shit was like thirty years ago. You expect me to remember somethin’ like that?”

  “Yes.”

  Rocky tilted his head and scratched at his beard. “Well, I fuckin’ don’t.”

  “You kill him because he butchered Coyote and his ol’ lady?”

  “Yeah.”

  “He didn’t kill Bear, though, right?” Bear was one of the founders of the Dirty Angels MC, along with Doc. Bear had also been Rocky’s pop.

  “No. When those fuckin’ Warriors killed Bear that’s when the war started.”

  “So, you went back and forth killing each other like the wild fucking west.”

  “Sounds ‘bout right.”

  Hunter blew out a breath. “As you know, Diesel tasked me with finding this possible son. You ain’t making it easy, Rocky.”

  Even with Rocky’s thick mustache covering his upper lip, Hunter could see the fucker smirk. “Life ain’t easy, boy.”

  “Betcha doing life ain’t easy, either. Hope it was worth it.”

  “Would do it again.”

  “I’m sure your fucking wife and kids appreciate that.”

  “Was doin’ it for them.”

  Sure he was.

  “Tell Diesel I cooperated an’ to bring his girls back for a visit. An’ also Jag’s little girl, too. Alexis didn’t come last time.”

  That’s because Rocky hadn’t mentioned Jag or his baby girl, so Jag wasn’t volunteering to bring Lexi to this hole.

  “When’s the last time you saw Jag?”

  Something flashed across Rocky’s face before he hid it. “When he was still livin’ with Ruby.”

  So the man hadn’t seen his only son since Jag was probably a teen. And once Rocky’s kids got out on their own they probably never visited. Or rarely.

  But then, Hunter had never visited his father, either. And his mother never forced him to. She wanted nothing to do with Danny Delgado, Sr. once he plowed the tractor trailer he was driving full speed into a crowd of people while drunk. And in doing so, killed six children and two teachers on an elementary school field trip. Not to mention, the many others who were injured.

  After a couple of years in the joint, his father fucking hung himself in his cell because he was too much of a pussy to do his time like a man.

  Hunter ground his teeth.

  So, yeah, he wasn’t going to judge Jag, or even Diamond and Jewel, for not wanting to visit their old man in prison.

  A loud buzz filled the small room Rocky was in and the metal door swung open.

  “Let’s go, Jamison. Time’s up,” a guard yelled into the room.

  Rocky stood and leaned toward the speaker, saying, “You tell Diesel. Yeah?”

  Hunter pushed to his feet, too, relieved at the thought of getting the hell out of there. “Yeah. I’ll tell him.”

  “An’ I wanna know the truth about Diamond.”

  “I’ll tell him that, too.”

  With a last nod, Rocky turned and headed toward the door and the waiting guard. Hunter waited until the heavy door slammed shut behind them before spinning on his heels and heading toward freedom.

  Today was a good reminder that he always needed to be careful and cover his tracks. He did not want to end up like Rocky or his father.

  It was time to head to Uniontown to do a little hunting.

  Get Hunter and Frankie’s story here:

  mybook.to/Shadows-Hunter

  If You Enjoyed This Book

  Thank you for reading Guts & Glory: Ryder. If you enjoyed Ryder and Kelsea’s story, please consider leaving a review at your favorite retailer and/or Goodreads to let other readers know. Reviews are always appreciated and just a few words can help an independent author like me tremendously!

  Want to read a sample of my work? Download a sampler book here: BookHip.com/MTQQKK

  Also by Jeanne St. James

  * Available in Audiobook

  Made Maleen: A Modern Twist on a Fairy Tale *

  Damaged *

  Rip Cord: The Complete Trilogy *

  Brothers in Blue Series:

  (Can be read as standalones)

  Brothers in Blue: Max *

  Brothers in Blue: Marc *

  Brothers in Blue: Matt *

  Teddy: A Brothers in Blue Novelette *

  The Dare Ménage Series:

  (Can be read as standalones)

  Double Dare *

  Daring Proposal *

  Dare to Be Three *

  A Daring Desire *

  Dare to Surrender *

  A Daring Journey

  The Obsessed Novellas:

  (All the novellas in this series are standalones)

  Forever Him *

  Only Him

  Needing Him

  Loving Her

  Temping Him

  Down & Dirty: Dirty Angels MC™ Series:

  (Can be read as standalones)

  Down & Dirty: Zak *

  Down & Dirty: Jag *

  Down & Dirty: Hawk *

  Down & Dirty: Diesel *

  Down & Dirty: Axel *

  Down & Dirty: Slade *

  Down & Dirty: Dawg *

  Down & Dirty: Dex *

  Down & Dirty: Linc *

  Down & Dirty: Crow *

  Guts & Glory Series

  (In the Shadows Security)

  Guts & Glory: Mercy

  Guts & Glory: Ryder

  Guts & Glory: Hunter

  Guts & Glory: Walker

  Guts & Glory: Steel

  Guts & Glory: Brick

  About the Author

  JEANNE ST. JAMES is a USA Today bestselling romance author who loves an alpha male (or two). She was only thirteen when she started writing and her first paid published piece was an erotic story in Playgirl magazine. Her first erotic romance novel, Banged Up, was published in 2009. She is happily owned by farting French bulldogs. She writes M/F, M/M, and M/M/F ménages.

  Want to read a sample of her work? Download a sampler book here: BookHip.com/MTQQKK

  To keep up with her busy release schedule check her website at www.jeannestjames.com or sign up for her newsletter: http://www.jeannestjames.com/newslettersignup

  www.jeannestjames.com

  jeanne@jeannestjames.com

  Blog: http://jeannestjames.blogspot.com

  Newsletter: http://www.jeannestj
ames.com/newslettersignup

  Jeanne’s Down & Dirty Book Crew: https://www.facebook.com/groups/JeannesReviewCrew/

  Get a FREE Erotic Romance Sampler Book

  This book contains the first chapter of a variety of my books. This will give you a taste of the type of books I write and if you enjoy the first chapter, I hope you’ll be interested in reading the rest of the book.

  Each book I list in the sampler will include the description of the book, the genre, and the first chapter, along with links to find out more. I hope you find a book you will enjoy curling up with!

  Get it here: BookHip.com/MTQQKK