Level Up: Violent Circle: Book Five

by Shade, S. M.

  Level Up

  Violent Circle: Book Five

  S.M. Shade

  Contents

  Where to find S.M. Shade

  Prologue

  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

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  More by S.M. Shade

  Copyright © 2019

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Cover art by Ally Hastings

  Formatting by Pink Elephant Designs

  Where to find S.M. Shade

  I have a private book group where no one outside of the group can see what you post or comment on. It’s adults only and is a friendly place to discuss your favorite books and authors. Drama free. I also host an occasional giveaway, and group members get an early peek at covers, teasers, and exclusive excerpts.

  You can join here. Shady Ladies Book Group

  You can also follow or friend me on Facebook. Shannon Shade

  Or like my page. S.M. Shade

  Prologue

  Trey

  Wow. That was unexpected, but I’m sure not complaining. She was amazing.

  “Did you hear that?” she whispers, sitting up and scooting to the edge of the bed. The streetlight filters through the window, outlining her cocked head.

  “I didn’t hear anything.”

  She pulls on her clothes and shoves her feet into her shoes. Her fingers scrape through her hair as she frantically tries to straighten it. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she’s trying to hide what just happened. What a shame. I thought it was good.

  “I have to run. Let’s keep this between us, okay?”

  A lesser man may be insulted, but I’m not bothered. Chicks can be weird about this stuff. I’ve learned not to take it personally. “Sure, no problem.”

  “Thanks,” she breathes.

  “For the orgasms or the discretion?”

  A grin finds its way to her face. “Both.” She drops a quick kiss on my lips and murmurs, “You have a killer tongue.”

  “I keep it with me at all times and you’re always welcome to visit us.”

  The door creaks as she eases it open and peeks out. Glancing back, she whispers, “Bye Trey.”

  “Drive safe, Sasha.”

  Chapter One

  Sasha

  “I’m on my way now!” Becca is not the most patient person. I can’t blame her this time because tonight is her night to celebrate. She’s been featured in Inked Up magazine and getting your work in that publication is no easy feat. Her tattoos are amazing.

  My taxi lets me out at the door of Silvy’s Bar and Grill, and I can hear the crowd before I even enter. There’s not much to do on weekends in this town. If you’re not into the clubs, this is the place to be.

  It’s a good thing Becca’s boyfriend, Denton, reserved a section because it looks like they’ve invited half the town. Noble and Jani sit at a table with Veronica and Neal. Becca waves from her spot beside Denton, gesturing for me to join them. I’m almost to their table when Trey steps around the corner and pulls out a chair for me. His grin is mischievous and kind of cute. Okay, it’s fucking adorable.

  Denton and Becca laugh as I pull out the chair next to it and sit down.

  “You wound me, Sasha. Deeply.” Judging by the brightness of his eyes, he’s already a couple of drinks in.

  No one knows about our little hookup, and I plan to keep it that way. Becca would hound me to no end to get with Trey if she knew. The teasing between us is nothing new. He has always hit on me, and I’ve always turned him down so nothing seems out of the ordinary to them.

  “You’ll get over it.” I turn to Becca. “Congrats again, girl. The layout was awesome. I loved that they chose one of your embroidery styles as well.”

  She beams at me. “I was surprised they picked that. It’s a relatively new style and not very popular.”

  Denton slings his arm around her neck and pulls her in for a kiss. “It will be now.”

  “Ugh, you two are disgusting. I need a drink.” There’s a line at the bar so it takes a few minutes for me to make my way to the front and get my drinks. When I turn, my shoulder bumps the guy standing right behind me, nearly making me spill my shot and vodka cranberry.

  “Are we doing shots?” Trey grins down at me.

  “We aren’t doing anything. Why are you following me?”

  He gives his order to the bartender, then shakes his head at me. “I’m ordering a drink. It’s a little arrogant to assume I followed you. Not everything is about you, you know.”

  Sighing, I bite back a smile at the sight of his little smirk. “Is this the kind of night we’re going to have?”

  Leaning over, he whispers in my ear. “What kind of night we have is up to you. Always.” He accepts his drink and heads back to the table where all our friends are gathered, laughing at something.

  It’s going to be a long night.

  A few shots and drinks later, and I’m having a blast. Trey keeps screwing with me, and I keep returning the favor. Our friends are oblivious to the truth beneath his teasing, but he’s getting to me. The thought of our one night stand, the way he used his tongue, keeps assaulting me. Maybe it’s the alcohol.

  Everyone is having a great time when Becca taps the back of my hand and announces, “Tell them about the job you did yesterday!”

  Her loud request seems to pierce through the din of voices until way too many people are waiting on my response. Thank you, Becca.

  Shrugging, I sit back. “A guy wanted a dick tattoo. It’s not that out of the ordinary.”

  Becca chuckles. “Except it was words that he wanted to be clear only when he was hard.”

  “What words?” Denton asks.

  “Why, are you looking for ideas?” Neal taunts.

  “Oh, maybe you haven’t heard. Denton is a whiny shit who can’t take a needle,” Trey says, dodging the slap Denton tries to deliver to the back of his head.

  “Shut up, fire crotch. At least I have a soul.”

  “Ginger jokes. How original.” They grin at one another.

  Throwing back another shot, I can’t help but giggle as I answer the question. “Tah dah!”

  Confusion appears on everyone’s faces as Becca and I crack up. Yeah, I’m drunk. “That’s what the tattoo said. He wanted the words tah dah and an exclamation point on his dick.”

  “That’s genius,” Noble says, and Jani shakes her head.

  “Don’t even think about it.”

  Trey gapes at me. “Did you have to get him hard to tattoo it?”

  “No! What kind of girl do you think I am?”

  His teasing grin is back. “I don’t know. Let’s go find out.”

  I’m going to ignore that comm
ent because it’s more tempting than I’d like to admit. “You just sort of stretch the skin out while you’re working on it.”

  All the guys groan and cover their crotches.

  Veronica leans forward. “What’s the worst tattoo you’ve ever done?”

  Becca’s gaze meets mine and a smile nearly cracks her face in half.

  “A jester,” I sigh. Confused silence reigns until I add. “Popping up out of the guy’s ass.”

  When the laughter dies down, Noble asks, “Like, just, between his butt cheeks?”

  It’s a tattoo that will haunt me for the rest of my life. “With a tattoo of a crank on his hip.”

  They all stare at me for a moment before Trey snorts, “A Jack-in-the-Box?”

  “That was the idea.”

  The live band chooses that moment to start playing, effectively killing the conversation, and the guys get dragged out onto the dance floor by their girlfriends.

  Trey wastes no time scooting over beside me. “So, I was thinking…”

  “Not going to happen, dude,” I laugh.

  He grins back at me. When did that grin become so damned cute? “I was just going to ask you to dance.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Well, yeah, but if you’re interested in other activities, I suppose I can go along with that.”

  “Big of you.”

  Shrugging, he sits back, his blue eyed gaze locked on me. “I’m a giver.”

  “Okay.”

  His eyes widen, and he sits up. “Okay?”

  “I’ll dance with you,” I add.

  “That was cruel, Sasha. A real hit below the belt.” I’m not going to think about anything below his belt. He gets to his feet and holds out his hand. “But I’m over it. Let’s dance.”

  The rest of the night is an alcohol dipped blur. I remember Trey’s body close to mine, the way he moved against me, the beat of the music tying us together as one. Then I was dancing with Becca, then Noble. Hell, I think we all ended up pairing off by the time it was over.

  The shock of the cold air as I stand out in front of the bar, waiting alongside Trey, Noble, and Jani for a taxi, sobers me up a bit. “You guys aren’t driving, are you?” I ask.

  “No, we have a taxi on the way. We’ll get my car tomorrow,” Noble says.

  My taxi shows up first, and I give everyone a wave as I hop in. Trey doesn’t try to convince me to go home with him or come with me which is a good thing. My brain would say no, but all the alcohol coursing through me would scream yes.

  * * *

  Hammering. Again with the damned hammering, and what the hell is that smell? Groaning, I drag myself out of bed, and glance at the clock. No wonder my eyes feel like someone poured sand in them. I’ve been asleep a grand total of three hours, which is about the same as I managed the night before, thanks to all the noise. I can’t keep going like this.

  A hot shower does little to wake me up, but the coffee I follow it with begins to make me feel halfway human. Staring into my fridge, I try to decide whether I want to fry a couple of eggs, or just have some toast and another cup of coffee. A shout leaps out of me, and my whole body jerks with a spasm I’m thrilled no one was here to see when the sudden sound of an electric saw cuts through the air.

  I’m done.

  Though I’m not due at work for hours, I grab my purse, double check that my phone and money are in it, throw on my coat, and head out the door.

  A grinning man wearing a toolbelt glances at me in the hallway then quickly retreats at the sight of my glare. I know he’s just doing his job, but I’m in no mood to be nice.

  Cold wind scrapes across my skin, and I spend the next few minutes sitting in my car, waiting for it to warm up while muttering fuck every few seconds. November in Morganville is a crapshoot. Some days you can wear short sleeves, a few days later, it’s cold enough to snow.

  My stomach growls on my drive to work, and I detour through a fast food drive-thru for a breakfast burrito and an orange juice.

  When I arrive at Dreams in Ink tattoo shop it’s dark and deserted as I expected, considering we don’t open for hours. Without turning on any lights, I drag our little space heater back into one of the private rooms, turn it on full blast, and eat my breakfast.

  I suppose I could work on some sketches or something, but the warmth of the heater plus the food in my stomach are combining with the lack of sleep, making the padded table I’m sitting on feel friendly.

  It’s nap time.

  With the door shut, the room is dark, and I doze off almost instantly. It feels like I’ve only blinked when a voice shakes me awake.

  “Whew, you could bake a cake in here.”

  Elijah, another artist and coworker, flips off the heater and stares down at me. “Sasha? Is everything okay?”

  Sitting up, I rub my palms over my face. “I got here early. They’re doing renovations in my building. Banging and sawing and shit at seven in the morning. What kind of sociopath starts work at seven a.m.?”

  “Most people,” he laughs. A glance at the clock shows me I slept almost three hours. The shop is getting ready to open.

  “Do you have any appointments scheduled?”

  He flips his hair out of his eyes in a way I unfortunately find incredibly sexy. “Yeah, the client should be here anytime.”

  I hop off the table. “Okay, give me a sec and I’ll be out to cover any walk-ins. I don’t have a booking until noon.”

  The few hours of sleep helped, and I feel halfway normal as the day goes on. Becca, my best friend and the owner of Dreams in Ink, walks in the private room as I’m cleaning up after my last client.

  “Did you sleep here last night?” she asks. “Elijah said you were crashed here this morning when he came in.”

  “No, I came in early.” It’s not a bad idea though. “The renovations have started on my floor and they’re loud as hell. Actually, I could crash here for a couple of nights if you don’t mind. The table is comfortable.”

  Her hands perch on her hips and she glares at me like a judging granny. “You aren’t staying here when we have an empty bedroom, bitch. Pack a bag and stay with us until the renovations are done.”

  Stay at Frat Hell? Her neighborhood, known as Violent Circle, isn’t the most sane place and the apartment full of college guys they’ve dubbed Frat Hell has been ground zero for most of the lunacy. I mean, it isn’t as crazy now that two of the guys have moved. Kenny is gone and Noble has moved down the street. It’s just Denton, Becca, and Trey.

  Trey, who I rode like a stolen bike, then ignored. Well, not ignored. I still hang out, and he’s been cool about it. Just like at the bar last week, we tease each other, but keep things friendly. Being near him for a week or so shouldn’t be too awkward.

  “Don’t you think you should run that by the guys?”

  She rolls her eyes and whips out her phone, sending a text. “Noble and Jani stayed when their apartment flooded. We have plenty of room and all get along.” Her phone beeps and she snorts out a laugh, showing me the return text message from Denton.

  Denton: Only if she sleeps between us.

  It’s quickly followed by one from Trey.

  Trey: Plenty of room in my bed.

  “I swear they share a brain,” she mumbles, then grins up at me. “So, extended sleepover?”

  “Are we going to stay up and eat ice cream and gossip about boys?”

  Elijah has been listening to our conversation, and he walks up, throwing his arm around me. “Don’t forget to wear nighties and practice kissing. I’ll come and make sure your technique is solid.”

  Elijah and I flirt with each other a little, but I don’t think either of us would let anything happen since we work together. He’s a fun guy. I will admit though, he has amazing lips, and I’d kind of like to kiss him just to see what they’re like.

  “Sorry, but having you there might make the naked pillow fight awkward,” I reply, shrugging him off me. “I’m going to go home and pack a bag then. Meet you at
your place after work?”

  Becca shrugs. “Sure, but you don’t have to wait. One of the guys is probably home. And I can give you the spare key tonight.”

  I give her a quick hug. “Thanks, babe.”

  “Now we’re talking!” Elijah shouts from across the shop, making the two guys browsing the art books laugh and earning him matching middle fingers.

  The shop door opens as Becca’s next appointment enters, and I throw on my coat. I guess I’m going home to pack a bag.

  * * *

  Becca texted Trey and Denton to let them know I’d be staying for a while, so at least it isn’t awkward when I show up at their door with a rolling suitcase.

  “There are sheets for the bed in the closet,” Denton tells me.

  “First room on the left!” Trey calls out, referring to his room as I head down the hall.

  I turn to give him an exasperated look, but his big boyish grin makes me laugh. Shaking my head, I escape into the extra bedroom. After Denton and Becca got together, and she moved into his room, they ended up with two spare bedrooms. Instead of finding a new roommate, they left a bed and dresser in one of them and made a weight room out of the other.

  This room has been closed off for a while. It’s a little musty smelling. When I go to open the window, I notice it’s missing a screen, but there are no bugs this time of year. It won’t hurt to leave it open for a bit.

  The dresser drawers are empty, and I decide to go ahead and unpack the few clothes and items I brought with me. Once I’ve done that, I find the sheets in the closet and make the bed, throwing a blanket on last. Now, I’m not sure what to do with myself. I’ve never hung out here without Becca before, but I guess I’d better get used to it. Besides, it’s not like Denton and Trey are strangers to me.