Sin & Savage

by Anna Mara

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  About Sin & Savage…

  All small-town schoolteacher Tori Jones wants is a relaxing, long weekend to herself. But the plans go awry when her troublemaking grandmother confesses her secret Internet boyfriend has disappeared with her money.

  So the ladies fly to Las Vegas and land knee deep in a world filled with liars, criminals and outlaw bikers. They need help!

  Enter Savage Monroe.

  The dirty outlaw biker has a busy weekend planned, especially with that shipment of guns coming in. The last thing he needs is to play babysitter to some goody two-shoes schoolteacher who wants to hire him to be her bodyguard.

  But, he’s thunderstruck. She’s about the most beautiful thing he’s seen in a long time, and he’s attracted to the woman like gravity. Too bad she’s an infuriating, stubborn, pain-in-the-butt, who refuses to do what you tell her! Can he keep her safe from the rogues of the road?

  The pair strike a deal.

  And the danger-filled quest begins.

  But can Tori trust the rough, tough biker? He comes from a different world and solves problems with his fists. Should she fight the crazy, insane pull she feels to the man?

  WARNING: VIOLENCE AND COARSE LANGUAGE

  Table of Contents

  About Sin & Savage… - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 10 - Chapter 11 - Chapter 12 - Chapter 13 - Chapter 14 - Chapter 15 - Chapter 16 - Chapter 17 - Chapter 18 - Chapter 19 - Chapter 20 - Chapter 21 - Chapter 22 - Chapter 23 - Chapter 24 - Chapter 25 - Chapter 26 - Chapter 27 - Chapter 28 - Chapter 29 - Chapter 30 - Chapter 31 - Chapter 32 - Chapter 33 - Chapter 34 - Chapter 35 - Chapter 36 - Chapter 37 - Chapter 38 - Chapter 39 - Chapter 40 - Chapter 41 - Chapter 42 - Chapter 43 - Chapter 44 - Chapter 45 - Chapter 46 - Chapter 47 - Chapter 48 - Chapter 49 - Chapter 50 - Chapter 51 - Chapter 52 - Chapter 53 - Chapter 54 - Chapter 55 - Chapter 56 - Chapter 57 - Chapter 58 - Chapter 59 - Chapter 60 - Chapter 61 - Chapter 62 - Chapter 63 - Chapter 64 - Chapter 65 - Chapter 66 - Chapter 67 - Chapter 68 - Chapter 69 - Chapter 70 - Epilogue - Also by Anna Mara - Copyright -

  Sin &

  Savage

  By

  Anna Mara

  Chapter 1

  Tuesday – 10:05 p.m.

  Las Vegas, Nevada

  Beggars, hookers, pickpockets, gangs, druggies—shadows in the night…

  Joe Sorelli’s nervous eyes scanned the dark, deserted back alley for any signs of deviant life. A whisper of unease washed over him. At 68 years old, he was well past his prime and his short, pudgy frame wouldn’t put up much of a defense if some young punk decided to attack him from behind. But he still had enough life in him to fight back if he saw it coming.

  He let his gaze prowl the alley once again but no one was around. The dilapidated buildings surrounding him were shut tight, save for an open window at the back of Delilah’s, a run-down biker bar hangout he had just delivered a last-minute meat order to twenty minutes ago.

  No. No one was around, thank God.

  He drew in a relieved breath and lowered his balding head back underneath the open hood of his broken-down, fourteen year old van. Outside of the flashy, touristy Casino Strip, downtown Las Vegas at night could be a scary place and if anyone would know that, it would be him. After all, hadn’t he lived his whole life in this Sin City of a town? He’d drawn his first breath here and would probably, one day, draw his last too, but he didn’t want that time to be tonight—no, definitely not tonight. He had plans, big plans, for his future and they didn’t include being murdered by some lowlife criminal trying to score in some derelict alleyway in the middle of Vegas at 10 o’clock at night.

  He lowered his eyes again to the radiator hose and with his grease-stained right hand, gave it another yank. If only he could get this stupid engine working again, he could drive out of here and be home in time for his nightly call with his sweetie-pie.

  Exasperated, Joe sighed and shook his head. He should have listened to his buddy, Mickey, and had the rad hose changed last week when the garage owner suggested it.

  Suddenly, a loud crash, which sounded like something metallic being thrown against a wall, pierced the silence. Joe jerked up in surprise, hitting his head on the open hood of his van. “Ohhh,” he moaned, as his hand rubbed the sore spot on his left temple. “What the…”

  The words were barely out of his mouth when he heard another crash, this time sounding like wooden chairs being violently shoved out of the way. His breath lodged in his throat and he froze, as his rapidly blinking eyes zeroed in on the open window of Delilah’s. He instinctively knew that’s where the commotion was coming from.

  Light streamed out through the open portal along with muffled, angry voices. Having delivered his butcher shop orders to the hangout for the past five months, he knew that whatever was happening in there, was happening in the small back office where the owner, Snake kept his desk along with a couple of dilapidated filing cabinets and a rumored stash of guns and drugs.

  “You think I fucking care, asshole?” The gruff words were shouted at full decibel by an adult male from within the bar. “You been holding out on me, stealing and keeping a larger piece of the pie for your miserable, lowlife self. I know it.”

  “Yeah, motherfucker, Willy told us all about it,” a second male’s voice rang out through the open glass.

  “N—no, please, I’m not holding back, Snake, I—I swear…” a third man pleaded in a choked, anguished voice.

  Joe’s hands turned clammy, as his heart kicked into warp speed. He knew that voice, the one who was begging. That was Dirty Dan, a small-time pawn shop owner on the other side of town, and a good friend of his. Shit, they’d known each other for some twenty years! But Joe also knew that his friend was secretly running stolen guns through his pawn shop business for the Sons of Perdition Biker Club, to whom this bar belonged. In fact, it had been Dirty Dan who’d gotten this dive hangout to become a customer of his butcher shop months ago.

  Run, his brain screamed at him, run now! But his feet were cemented to the spot. He couldn’t run—and he shouldn’t run. What if his friend needed help?

  Willing his body forward, he crept to the window and stood beneath it. The small pane was located a good six feet up from the ground and Joe, being only five feet tall, was too short to reach it. He spotted a plastic recycling box in a corner of the building. Tiptoeing to it, he picked it up and turning it upside down, gingerly positioned it underneath the sill. He cautiously levered himself up and peered into the opening.

  Joe felt the blood drain from his face. A wave of nausea climbed up his throat as he witnessed Snake, a big-as-a-bull, iron-muscled thug sporting a bald head and goatee, holding a knife to Dirty Dan’s throat. His colorful snake tattoo which encircled his right arm from the top of his shoulder to the tip of his wrist was clearly visible as was his meaty hand that was gripping the blade, ready to execute a death sentence on his friend. His second-in-command, a smaller but equally brutish biker named Rocker, had the pawn shop owner’s head trapped in a vicious headlock.

  Rocker squeezed Dirty Dan’s throat hard. The older man gasped for breath and his bloodshot eyes bugged out even more. Snake pressed the long knife deeper against Dan’s skin, as his black eyes glistened with excitement. “God forgives. We don’t,” he stated. Bringing the dagger down, he thrust it into Dirty Dan’s belly. As blood gushed, he pulled the blade out and stabbed him again…and again…and again…and again. The pawn shop owner’s face contorted into a silent scream.

  Terrifi
ed, Joe gasped. A shaking overtook his body and he went weak at the knees. He knew his friend was dead. Taking a step back, he suddenly lost his balance and fell off of the box, landing onto his tailbone with a grunt. In a split second, Joe staggered up and ran for his life, down the dark alley towards the street. He had to get away as fast his short legs could carry him if he didn’t want to meet a similar fate like his old pal had tonight.

  Back inside the bar office, Snake had heard the ruckus outside. “What the fuck is that?” he yelled at Rocker, before rushing towards the back door. Still clutching the bloodied knife, he emerged into the open air just in time to see Joe running into the street and disappearing from view.

  “It’s Joe Sorelli!” he screamed at his flunky. “Get him!”

  Chapter 2

  Wednesday – 3:30 p.m.

  Gideon, Texas

  The school buzzer rang out, signaling that all classes at Bradford Elementary School were over for the day.

  Twenty-seven year old Victoria Alexandra Jones, known to everyone as Tori, looked over her class of kindergarten children with a satisfied smile. “Okay, everybody, always remember to play nice, and I love each and every one of you. Class dismissed.”

  As the children gathered up their crayons and drawings, parents and caretakers were already waiting outside in the hallway for the kids to emerge. Colton, a shy, five-year old boy, ran from the back of the class to where Tori stood beside her desk.

  The child approached and Tori bent to his eye level, instinctively knowing he wanted to tell her something of great importance since the boy rarely spoke. She flashed him a gentle smile of encouragement. “Yes, Colton?”

  “You’re pretty,” he whispered, before running out the door into the waiting arms of his grandmother.

  Tori let out a deep sigh of relief as he left. Those were the first words she’d ever heard that child speak besides an occasional yes and no. Now if she could only get him to interact more with the other children, he’d do just fine. She made a mental note to speak to his parents again about what could be done.

  As she gathered up her papers on her desk, Cassie Platte, a fellow teacher and close friend walked in. “Tori, my mom thanks you for the beautiful lilies you sent.”

  Tori nodded. “Tell her I’ll come visit soon. How’s her leg?”

  “Sore as hell. It’s going to be in a cast for a while, that’s for sure, but that’ll teach her to stop running for the bus.”

  “A lesson she’s now learnt the hard way.”

  “Oh yeah! I told her buses are like men—let ’em go because there’s always another one on the way.” A devilish twinkle sparkled in Cassie’s eyes. “Speaking of which, Deb, Gloria, and myself are going to Splay’s tomorrow night. Wanna come?”

  Splay’s was the newest nightclub hotspot in Gideon, Texas, the small town where the girls lived. Gideon, with a population of 10,642, was a sleepy corner of the world that sometimes it seemed time had forgotten. Even though it had begrudgingly shifted into the twenty-first century with cell phones, internet and fast food, everyone still knew every neighbor on their block by first name; and no matter where one went in the small town, you were always guaranteed to meet someone you knew whether you were buying groceries downtown at Smitty’s, getting stamps at the local post office near Fraser’s Beer Joint, or serving potato salad at the annual church picnic in July. Tori, the only child of Pastor Denby Jones and his wife Clara, had been born and raised here, and she loved it. Small town Texas was in her blood.

  Cassie’s expectant eyes lit up as she waited on her friend’s answer. “So, how about it? Wanna come?”

  Tori’s lips twitched with humor. “No thanks. I’ve heard the place is infested with rats.”

  “Rats?”

  “Yup! The male variety kind.”

  Cassie let out a short laugh and shook her head. “You’ve been officially divorced for a year now. They’re not all scumbags like Tod, you know.”

  “I beg to differ. I think they’re all cheating, lying, dirt bag crooks who’ll promise to love you forever until the next female comes within sniffing distance. Then, they’ll max out your credit cards to the tune of $57,824 and 56 cents, and run off with said female, making you the laughing stock of the town.”

  Cassie lightly touched Tori’s arm to comfort her. “No one in Gideon is laughing at you, Tori, know that. Everyone loves you here.”

  “I know, I guess.” Tori lowered her glistening eyes away from her friend’s laser-sharp gaze. She didn’t want her to see how deeply her ex-husband had hurt her when he’d left like that. And then to leave her with all those debts that she was still trying to pay off? Well… it was just too humiliating.

  To hide her shame, she collected the toys scattered around the classroom. “It’s just that I don’t appreciate being a bigger scandal than when Sophie shot up her husband’s pickup when it was parked outside his girlfriend’s house, that’s all.”

  Cassie laughed. “Yeah, you did beat her on the scandal meter, for sure. But how are you ever going to meet another man and get married again, girl, if you don’t put yourself out there anymore?”

  “I’m not. I’m not interested in meeting any men right now and I’m certainly not interested in ever getting married again, that’s for sure!”

  Cassie studied her friend’s set expression and shook her head in disbelief. Tori could have any eligible bachelor in Gideon if she wanted. Why, just the other day, hadn’t Bobby, whose family owned the successful Simms Hardware store, slyly asked her if Tori had a new guy in her life yet?

  Even though she was only 5’2”, the beloved schoolteacher had a petite curvaceous figure that had captured the attention of many a male in the small town. But it was her regal bearing of strength and her willingness to help any soul in need in the community that had made them always treat her with respect. She had a cap of glossy, shoulder-length brown hair, an angelic round face, a fine straight nose and a stubborn tilt to her chin that telegraphed that she was nobody’s fool—until her ex-husband had made her into one, of course. But even that had had no effect in how the men of Gideon felt about Tori. Cassie knew that if any of them could get their hands on her ex, Tod Shelton, he’d be drawn and quartered before he could get anywhere near her friend again. Her beauty held a sweetness that went beyond physicality and it made anyone in her proximity want to protect her, even, if at the same time, she was trying to protect you.

  Cassie frowned. “Come on, Tori, just one night of fun with the girls. Don’t let this extra-long weekend go to waste. It’s not every day they find mold in this old school and have to give us a Thursday, Friday and a Monday off while they clean it up.”

  Tori laughed as she rustled through the papers on her desk and started stuffing them into her briefcase. “I’m not wasting anything. I have big plans for my time off.”

  “Like what?”

  “I’m going to get into a hot bubble bath tonight and I’m not getting out of that tub until Sunday morning when I have to pick up Nana for church and lunch. Then I’m getting back into it all day Monday. All I want is some peace and quiet for the next five days.”

  Her friend frowned disapprovingly. “That sounds boring.”

  Tori feigned an expression of outraged insult. “Are you calling me boring?” she laughed.

  Cassie’s eyes turned sheepish. “Well, I didn’t want to say but the girls and I—we kind of think you’re turning into…Bonnie Bell.”

  “What?” Tori exploded, as a flush of hot anger rose into her cheeks.

  Bonnie Bell was a pious nun who was now the oldest resident of Gideon, Texas. At 104 years of age, she lived a quiet life at Shady’s Retirement Home.

  Cassie nodded. “You’re no fun anymore. And you never want to come out with us either. I’m not saying you have to party every night but the way you’re acting is not healthy for a young, beautiful woman like yourself. It’s like you went from twenty-seven to a hundred in a flash of lightning.”

  “So, you, Deb and Gloria talk a
bout me behind my back, is that it? Thanks. Thanks a lot! Nice friends I’ve got.”

  Tori violently shoved the rest of her papers into her briefcase. She was furious! To think her friends called her a bore behind her back.

  Cassie put her hand on Tori’s arm to still her friend’s movements. “Don’t be mad, Tori, please. It’s just that we think you’re way too young and pretty to be sitting at home alone every night. And just because the first chicken you cooked in the pot came out rubbery, doesn’t mean the next one is gonna taste the same.”

  Suddenly, Tori’s anger evaporated like a puff of smoke and she snorted out a quick laugh. “How did we go from me being a fuddy-duddy to the art of poultry cuisine?”

  “You know what I mean,” Cassie chortled. “Tod Shelton was a snake and we just don’t want him to steal your joy, that’s all. The girls and I—we all love you, Tori.”

  “I know, Cassie, but can’t you understand? All I want right now is some quiet time for me. This long weekend is like a godsend. You know my parents are still on that Haiti mission until the fall, and Nana said she’ll be busy playing bingo with the ladies, so not to call her. I’m free and clear for the next five days and I’m taking advantage of it.”

  “How is Nana Estelle?”

  “Smoking like a factory chimney and swearing like a sailor who hasn’t been on leave in a year.”

  Cassie giggled. “Then she’s fine.”

  “Oh, yeah!”

  Nana Estelle Crumpton was the 76 year old mother of Tori’s mom, Clara. At a diminutive 4’ 11” and known around town for her bleached-blonde, sky high bouffant hairstyle, she was a feisty character who insisted on living by herself in her own condo and who passionately disliked her uptight, straight-laced son-in-law, Pastor Denby Jones. The argument they’d had at last year’s church picnic had started with a comment he’d made about her noodle salad and had ended when she’d called him a “judgmental son-of-a-bitch” and he’d called her “irrational and impulsive”. But none of the other picnickers had paid any mind. It had even become an annual tradition for the two to argue at the July event.