Max

by Terry Bolryder

  Max

  Club Crimson

  Terry Bolryder

  Copyright © 2019 by Terry Bolryder

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  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

  Epilogue

  Sample of Awakened Sea Dragons

  Also by Terry Bolryder

  Chapter 1

  Max tucked an errant strand of hair behind one ear as the wind-battered rain tried to plaster another against his cheek.

  At times like this, Lock liked to appear and ask Max what he was thinking keeping his hair so long, but Max simply shrugged him off.

  As with most things Lock said, it didn’t deserve an answer.

  As Max moved the rope to let another group into Club Crimson, he nodded to the excited human women waiting to go inside. He didn’t miss their interested glances, the eager looks they threw his way as they walked by him, appraising him from head to toe.

  He simply didn’t care.

  As he waited for the next opening, he lifted a few strands of hair and looked down at them. As they glinted in shades of blond and brown and red, visible even in the low light, he took a deep breath and tried to remember how his home country had smelled, sounded.

  This hair, his mane, was the last lingering reminder that he had ever had a family or a home.

  It was probably best that he forgot both.

  The streets were vacant, except for the occasional car that passed by, probably going to the parking lot so it could unload another group of giggling girls or eager male shifters.

  Max didn’t really agree with Benny’s dream of using Club Crimson to unite shifters with humans. Then again, lion shifters had always believed the two should stay separate, and most lions still lived on their own island, far away.

  Those that weren’t exiled, at least.

  Max looked over his shoulder as Benny signaled there was room for another group and let the women pass by him. One winked and brushed his arm with soft fingers, but he felt nothing.

  As usual, totally numb.

  His fate should have been on Pride Island. But his family had destroyed whatever hope there might have been.

  So he ignored the human woman as she pouted and followed her friends inside, clearly piqued by his lack of attention.

  She’d get over it quickly. Humans always did.

  His lip curled. Love for humans was easy. Fleeting. The fact that he’d seen many successful shifter-human relationships since working at the club didn’t change his overall doubt about the whole situation.

  Humans didn’t know anything about what a “mate” was. They married willy-nilly and divorced and broke up and had one-night stands. Max had been offered all of it and turned it all down.

  He was there for Club Crimson, but only the part that happened when the club closed up, the humans left, and invited shifters could share information.

  With everything going on in the shifter world, intel from every possible source was vital.

  New creatures were emerging every day. Some from the shadows where they had always existed and some completely new, as if made from pure darkness.

  He called one of those creatures his friend.

  Dare, a nightmare dragon, rarely showed up at the club anymore, due to spending all his time with his human mate, Sasha, whom Max actually admired.

  Sasha had accepted Dare’s monstrous form with hardly a second glance, and even before they’d been mated, she’d been unable to look at anyone else.

  Perhaps if Max found someone like that, mating wouldn’t be too intolerable.

  But the part of him that had grown up a lion, separate from humans, still saw it as dubious.

  Thunder cracked, and Max looked up at the sky that had been intermittently drizzling all night. If the rain picked up more, they’d have no choice but to empty the line and close the doors.

  If they did, Max would have to actually go inside and work the floor, which meant dealing with complaints, and Max hated complaints.

  It was why he stayed out here at the door, a formidable wall that didn’t really have to talk to anyone.

  As long as the weather didn’t worsen, he wouldn’t have to, so he raised a wary eye to the sky, shook his head at it in warning, and hoped for the best.

  Jackie Moore wasn’t sure what had convinced her to come out with her co-workers that night.

  It was stormy outside, with intermittent rain. The perfect kind of night to cuddle up with a good book and a warm blanket. And enjoy some time alone.

  Maybe it was because she worked in IT and, by the end of the day, was tired of people bothering her, but she just didn’t understand the point of outings like this.

  “So the guys here are hot?” one of her co-workers, a quiet girl she didn’t know from accounting, asked eagerly.

  “So hot,” answered Della, the ringleader of the group and one of the customer service managers, fanning her face dramatically. “I’ve heard there’s nothing like it.”

  “They better be hot,” Lauren, one of the temps, added sulkily, looking outside the window of the Uber SUV they were taking. “I mean, look at this part of town. Can’t be anything to scream about.”

  Jackie glanced back out the window and had to agree. It was dark and industrial and nothing like the kind of place she would bet her co-workers usually frequented.

  Hot, skinny girls in their twenties like Lauren could get into the hottest clubs in the center of town, surrounded by expensive cars and well-lit streets.

  This part of town seemed to be almost forgotten.

  “I hope you aren’t being crazy,” Lauren said. “I don’t want to get robbed here.” She leaned in closer to Della, obviously not wanting to be heard. “Why did you bring Jackie? She’s just going to be a wet blanket, and they aren’t going to want to let her in.” Her voice held a sneer, and she clearly thought Jackie couldn’t hear her. “I mean, look what she’s wearing.”

  In reflex, Jackie looked down at the hoodie she’d casually thrown on in response to going out in the cold. Perhaps it was a little worn, with little fuzzies on the navy fleece and a bit of chipping on the zipper, but it made her feel comfy and at home.

  After all, she had been planning to head home and curl up with a nice book before Della had ambushed her and insisted she come out to a club.

  Not one to like conflict, Jackie had tried to give her reasons for not wanting to go out that night.

  Like being an utter homebody and someone who never went to any kind of club.

  Even in college, she hadn’t been the type that bouncers pulled back the rope for. She was more likely to be the one fixing the DJ machine at the back.

  She shoved her hands in her pockets, wondering if she could talk to the Uber driver about taking her home after all, once Della gave up on her insane desire to drag her into the club. Once Della saw the bouncers’ reaction to Jackie, Jackie was sure she’d give up on her.

  Chubby girls with sho
rt hair and no sense of fashion weren’t really on any club’s wanted list.

  She relaxed back into her chair, casually eavesdropping as Lauren continued to gossip with Della.

  “I told you. I have my reasons,” Della said cryptically. “We need her tonight. To get in.”

  That perked Jackie’s interest. What could she possibly offer that they didn’t? Did they need her to hack into a system or something? Because that wasn’t really her area of expertise.

  “Why? What does she have that I don’t?” Lauren asked, getting a little bolder and louder this time as she raked her eyes over Jackie with disdain. Even from the front seat, Jackie could feel it.

  “We’ll talk about it later,” Della said, not at all subtle.

  Jackie didn’t really care. She pulled out her earbuds, slipped them in, and resolved herself to listening to music for the rest of the trip. Next time, no matter how much a pushy person like Della begged or how much she thought maybe, just maybe, she should get out once in a while, she would ignore an invitation like this.

  If there was a little part of her that still wanted to be one of the cool girls, it was quickly dying by the minute.

  Someone tapped her shoulder just as she closed her eyes to enjoy the music, and she turned to see Della watching her expectantly.

  “Come on. We’re here. Pay attention.”

  Jackie pulled out her earbuds and slowly rolled them up to put in her purse as she stared up at the club in front of them. The other girls were eagerly getting out, murmuring about the huge line of attractive women, the pulsing music, and the odd setting of the club, given that everything around it was dark and dingy.

  The club itself seemed new enough, with the words Club Crimson lit up in bright neon.

  At the entrance, a few feet away from the line and the rope that blocked it off, was the bouncer.

  As Jackie’s eyes trailed up his long, tall, muscular body, she got the first inclination that Della might be right about the guys inside.

  This man was beautiful.

  She blinked as if he might disappear and be replaced by a normal man when she opened her eyes, but no. He was there.

  He looked like something from the front of one of her books, with long hair a little past his shoulders that wasn’t typical for men in real life.

  She couldn’t make out the color, but it was somewhere between blond and red and brown, with a very interesting hue to it.

  She couldn’t make out the color of his eyes due to the dim light around them and the flashing neon coming from the club, backlighting his substantial figure.

  He wore a button-up shirt that was barely containing his body, the cuffs rolled up to show off tanned, bulging forearms and surprisingly beautiful, long-fingered hands that were clasped carefully in front of him.

  His perfect, classically handsome features leaned toward harsh as he kept a stoic expression on his face, staring at nothing in particular. He could have been made of stone, if not for the slight twitching at the corner of one eye, suggesting irritation.

  Women from the line called out to him, but, as bouncers were probably trained to do, he ignored them, looking over his shoulder here and there, presumably to wait for a signal from inside.

  She shook her head to break herself out of her reverie and was about to head for the back of the line when she felt Della take hold of her arm, jerking her closer.

  “Come on. Let’s go to the front,” Della said.

  Jackie shook her head, pointing to the back of the line. “We should wait our turn like everyone else does.”

  “Oh, please, half these bitches already tried to jump the line and it didn’t work.”

  “So why would we try it?” Jackie asked frankly.

  “Because we have something they don’t,” Della said, practically dragging Jackie to the front with her.

  Jackie let out an aggravated sigh. There was no point in arguing with Della, and once the bouncer rejected her outright, she could simply go home.

  She shoved her hands in her pockets as she let Della push her forward.

  As they reached the narrow-eyed, grumpy-looking bouncer, Lauren stepped out in front.

  The bouncer, who now had his arms folded, stared down at her with his heavy brow lowered in consternation.

  Jackie could already tell this was going to go wrong.

  Lauren apparently had no idea, because she walked right up to the intimidating figure and attempted to run a finger down his chest.

  Jackie had to smile when he stepped to the side, deflecting her hand as if dodging a bullet, and then looked at her with an expression of disapproval so strong she could feel Lauren literally melting like cotton candy in a rainstorm.

  “What do you want?” He looked at their group, taking a second to brush back a luscious wet lock of multicolored hair. The urge to touch it overtook Jackie in a way nothing ever had. Despite its length, it looked so incredibly… masculine. Strong.

  Jackie snapped out of it as Della pushed her forward, making her stumble in front of the huge bouncer.

  He reached out and caught her with both hands on her shoulders, and she winced at the feel of her chubby arms under his firm, perfect fingers. Winced at the idea of being touched in general by a man like this when she’d been perfectly happy to just watch.

  He gently set her back on her feet, and she braved looking up into his eyes to see a much softer expression than the one he’d given Lauren. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes.”

  He scowled at Della. “Why did you push her?”

  “I didn’t mean to,” Della said, her voice simperingly sweet. “I just wanted you to take a look at her, if you know what I mean.”

  Embarrassment rushed through Jackie, making her hot all the way down to her feet. Had Della’s goal been to humiliate her? All the women here were so beautiful, so made-up. Jackie felt like an idiot for coming here and thinking she could just find a nice corner to drink and people-watch in the dark.

  The bouncer studied her appraisingly and then, much to Jackie’s surprise, opened the door to the club, waving them forward as the rest of the line protested.

  Della sent the others a triumphant look, put her arm through the other two girls’ elbows, and marched toward the entrance of the club, where lights were flashing and darkness awaited.

  “See? I told you it would work if we brought a chubby girl,” Della said with a laugh.

  Lauren sent Jackie a taunting look over her shoulder as the other girls disappeared into the club while Jackie froze in place, sheer panic and mortification moving through her.

  She knew it had been suspicious when, never having made an effort before, Della had recruited her tonight. But what kind of club would prefer that, and was it some sick kind of joke?

  She looked carefully up at the bouncer. “Is it true? Did you let them in because of me?”

  He locked eyes with her, and she was shocked to see an intense, beautiful gold color there. He nodded slowly, and her heart dropped into her stomach.

  Being humiliated already sucked, but having this gorgeous man be a part of it was too much.

  Jackie took two stumbling steps back and nearly tripped off the sidewalk, but before the bouncer could reach for her, she took off, running past the back of the line and heading for any sort of place she could hide.

  She found it in an alley behind the club and sank against the cold brick wall as she fought back tears and looked skyward.

  Jackie was happy with her body. She’d get over this. People like Della and Lauren could go to hell, and she wouldn’t make the mistake of trusting them again.

  And as for that gorgeous bouncer who thought it was funny to let girls skip the line if they brought a chubby friend? Jackie would forget about him as well.

  Hopefully.

  She was collecting herself, getting ready to call an Uber and head home for some wine to forget this whole night, when a tiny, weak sound called out to her.

  Pushing off the wall, and probably against her bett
er judgement, she moved farther into the alley to investigate.

  Chapter 2

  Max cocked his head, wondering why the beautiful woman in the navy sweatshirt had run so hard from him that she’d almost tripped off the sidewalk.

  Despite his height and intimidating presence, women didn’t usually react to him with fear. He didn’t think he gave them a reason to.

  He was here to protect them, nothing more.

  And why would anyone hate him for letting them line jump?

  Max usually tried to be fair at the door, unlike certain other bouncers who had given the club a reputation for letting in the curvy body type many male shifters preferred.

  But when he’d seen the woman’s obvious embarrassment and she’d looked up at him with those big brown eyes, it had stirred his protective instincts.

  He’d let in her group just to make her awful friends shut up, not because he was attracted to her.

  Though, her fresh-faced innocence, beautiful dark skin, soft curls, and luscious figure did call to the animal inside him and probably any shifter male in the vicinity.

  That thought, combined with the realization that she might be alone out in the dark, made Max want to go find her, so he called for Lock on the radio.

  Lock appeared with his perpetual shit-eating smirk just as Max was about to abandon his position. “What’s up? You want to work inside tonight?” He put a hand out to catch a few raindrops, and Max noted that, as always, Lock had several leather bracelets on his tanned wrist.

  Max smiled, knowing that between those and the leather jacket Lock was wearing, he wouldn’t fare well in the rain tonight.

  Lock was one of the owners of Club Crimson and technically Max’s boss, but Max in no way trusted him. He’d assessed him pretty quickly as the type with his own hidden motives and a smile that hid a much darker persona than Lock would ever admit.