Joyride: Savage Menace MC Book 4

by Marie, Kay

  * * *

  8 months ago

  Buster has a date tonight with his one that got away. Prez doesn’t want any of us going anywhere alone, so I’m tagging along. The chick, Cali, owns a bakery, called A Novel Bunch, in the city. He’s meeting with her at a pizza shop across the street from her bakery. I’ll be hanging out at the bakery while they’re on their date.

  I follow Buster on my bike. It doesn’t take long to get there, but any amount of time on my bike is therapeutic. For however long I’m riding, my mind is void of everything but the road in front of me.

  Buster pulls his car into a parking spot in front of the pizza shop, We Knead Pizza. How punny. I park my bike in front of A Novel Bunch and walk in. I’m met with three women, all staring at me. One of the baristas behind the counter has the most breathtaking, doe eyes I’ve ever seen. I lock eyes with her and I find myself not wanting to look away.

  “Hey, ladies.” I greet all of them, still not taking my eyes off doe eyes. I give a playful smile. “I’m Sketch.”

  Her cheeks flush pink. That’s a new one for me. Most women, when they see the Savage cut, tend to throw themselves at us. This one is shy and it’s fucking adorable.

  “Look somewhere else, dude. She has a boyfriend.” That comes from the girl next to doe eyes, making her blush deepen. Of course someone as gorgeous as her has a boyfriend. I break eye contact with her, turning to the one who’s all dressed up.

  “Cali, right?”

  She nods.

  “Buster is at the pizza shop,” I tell her.

  “Thanks,” she replies. The three of them exchange a few more words, and I make my way closer to the counter. I glance for a name tag and find it instantly.

  Wren. I don’t even know her, but I can tell her name fits her perfectly. My eyes move over the menu. I quickly decide on what I want.

  “May I please have a black coffee and a banana nut muffin,” I ask Wren.

  “Sure.” She avoids eye contact with me. I make her nervous. The thought makes me grin. She rings up my order and gives me my total. I hand her a twenty. By the time she hands me my change, the other girl, Emma, has brought my coffee and muffin. I put my change and another twenty in the tip jar.

  “Savage Menaces, huh,” Emma says. “Wren, isn’t your brother part of that MC?”

  That piques my interest. I know about most of the brothers’ families. I’m sure I would remember if I had met Wren before. That’s not a face I would forget easily.

  “Um, yeah. He doesn’t ride a motorcycle though,” Wren replies.

  “He’s a Rider,” I ask. She looks at me like she doesn’t know what the hell I’m talking about, and then it registers.

  “Yeah, that’s it. He’s one of the Savage Riders,” she confirms.

  Son of a bitch.

  “You’re Shade’s sister,” I state.

  “Yup, sure am.” Her voice is clipped.

  “Not close with him?”

  “I used to be,” she says. Her eyes are distant as if she’s replaying a memory in her mind.

  “Enough said. Not my business,” I tell her. She gives me a small, thankful smile, making my heart skip a beat. The fuck? I’ve never had a girl make me feel like that from smiling at me. Hell, I’ve never had a girl make me feel like that ever.

  “So, Sketch,” she says. “How’d you get that name?”

  “I’m always sketching shit,” I explain. “I’m pretty big into drawing, and I’m a tattoo artist.”

  Her eyes light up. We fall into an easy conversation after that. I come to a conclusion— boyfriend or not, I need this girl in my life.

  9

  Sketch

  We pull up to Gator’s place a quarter after three. Climbing out of Clutch’s car, I get a look at his house. It’s a huge farmhouse. If I had to guess, I’d say it had anywhere from eight to ten bedrooms. We walk around to the backyard where there’s music playing, along with lots of laughter.

  “Clutch, Diesel! Good to see y’all again.” I’m going to guess this is Gator. He turns to me. “And you must be Sketch. I’m Gator. Welcome to my humble abode.”

  I chuckle. “It’s nice to meet you. This place is amazing. How much land do you own?”

  “Oh, roughly eighty acres,” he tells me.

  “Not bad,” Kicks mutters.

  “Come meet the rest of the guys,” Gator says. We follow him to a picnic table full of people. There are a few scantily clad women scattered around. Gator stands at the head of the table to introduce everyone, pointing as he goes. “This is Biggie, Chaos, Rex, Outlaw, Vegas, Kamikaze, and Macgyver. Fellas, these are a few of the brothers from Savage Menaces MC and Riders.”

  Head nods and hellos are exchanged.

  “Some of you ride bikes,” I ask.

  “Chaos, Mac, Rex, and Vegas do,” Biggie informs me.

  “Barbie, get some chairs for our new guests,” Gator orders one of the girls. She and another girl each bring two chairs over for us.

  “Take the girls inside. We have things to discuss,” Gator tells her. As soon as all the girls are inside, we get down to business.

  “So, all of y’all want to be part of the Savages?” My eyes move around the group.

  “Yeah,” Chaos says. “We’ve all taken time to mull it over and we’ve all talked about it. This is what we want.”

  “Why Savage Menaces,” Kicks asks them.

  “You hear things out on the streets. From what we’ve all heard y’all are, without a doubt, not to be fucked with,” Outlaw says. “But, we’ve also heard about the brotherhood. That’s what drew us in the most.”

  “Y’all will need to come out to Texas and meet Bull, Buster and the rest of the club,” I inform them. “I’d say the half that wants to be Menaces come first, then those who want to be Riders can come out a week or two later.”

  “That’s doable,” Gator states. “How long are y’all in town for?”

  “At least through the end of the week,” I tell him. “There’s a tattoo convention I’m interested in next weekend. I’m still trying to talk these assholes into staying long enough to go.”

  “I’m down to stay,” Clutch announces.

  “He’s down to get his dick wet,” Kicks says. Everyone laughs.

  “Ah, you’ve met someone already?” Humor laces Gator’s voice.

  Clutch shrugs. “Something like that.”

  “We ran into someone we know and she was with some friends,” I explain.

  “Someone we know,” Clutch mutters under his breath. I shoot him a glare.

  “Interesting.” Gator chuckles. When I turn to him, he’s studying both me and Clutch.

  “Anyway,” Diesel says. “If y’all get the okay to start our New Orleans chapter, what are you gonna do about a clubhouse?”

  Outlaw's eyes light up. “I have some blueprints drawn up for a clubhouse. Gator has enough property, we need to decide between a couple different locations to build.”

  “Until then, the house would be our temporary clubhouse,” Gator adds.

  I nod in approval. “Bring those with you when you come to Texas. Bull will want to see the plans.”

  Gator and I fall into conversation about club businesses and their plans for their potential chapter. Vegas and Kicks run inside to bring the girls back out. Kicks drags one of the girls onto his lap as he sits back in his chair. She has stark black hair, green eyes, and a tan like she spends all her time in the sun. She’s wearing waist high shorts and a Calvin Klein crop top, her tits threatening to spill out the top.

  “That’s Raven, she’s new around here.” Gator must have caught me staring. “None of the guys have fucked her, yet.”

  “Looks like they won’t get the chance to,” I tell him.

  “I’d say that’s for the best. She’s too good to be passed around,” he says.

  “Hey there, fellas.” This girl has a bikini top that barely holds her tits that are, in my opinion, too big. The button on her shorts is undone, and they’re rolled down once
, revealing the straps of her g-string. “Can I get you anything?” She runs her nails across my shoulders.

  “I’m good.” I lean forward, resting my arms on my knees.

  Gator lets out a full belly laugh, then waves her off. “Go on, Claws.”

  She scoffs and walks away. I may have thought about getting laid while here, but that was before I saw Wren. I haven’t been able to fuck another woman since I met her. It’s been a long eight months, that’s for sure. My eyes move around the group. Diesel is in deep conversation with Mac about American made cars. Clutch is nose deep in his phone, cheesin’ like an idiot. I’ve noticed him talking with Rex and Kamikaze a bit. Then there’s Kicks. He’s cupcakin’ like nothing I’ve seen before. We’ll have to drag him out of here when it’s time to go.

  “So, tattoo convention. Do you even have any more space for tattoos,” Gator asks.

  “I have a few spots saved for something special,” I admit. “It’s more about looking for new artists for my shop back in Texas.”

  “Your own shop, huh? That’s badass.”

  “It’s technically owned by the club, but Bull put me in charge of it. I make most of the business decisions, only needing to run certain things by him,” I tell him. “Y’all will need to have a handful of club-owned businesses too. Bull will go over all that with you when the time comes.”

  “We’ve tossed around some ideas for businesses. Definitely open to new ideas, too,” Gator says.

  “Sounds like y’all are prepared.”

  “That we are.” He grins. “You know, y’all can stay here instead of at that hotel if you want.”

  “We might take you up on that.” As the night goes on, I realize how well these guys would fit in with everyone back home. I’ll call Bull tomorrow to let him know and we’ll work on getting them out there for him to chat with.

  10

  Wren

  A few days go by, and I am in a constant battle trying to decide if I should reach out to Sketch or not. One moment, I have all the confidence in the world and I’m ready to talk to him. Seconds later, my courage has fizzled out, and I’m back at square one.

  “If you don’t stop moping around the house, grow some lady balls and call Sketch, I might have to do it myself,” Aria says.

  My eyes shoot to hers. “You wouldn’t.”

  “I might.” She shrugs. “Keep sulking and find out.”

  “You don’t even know if Sienna told Shade you texted her,” Elena points out. “She’s your best friend. Do you really think she’d give you up that quick?”

  “You won’t find out unless you turn your phone on,” Aria adds. I sit on the couch, pulling my knees to my chest. I stare at my cell phone, sitting on the coffee table like it might jump up and bite me. Aria lets out a loud sigh and grabs my phone.

  “What are you doing?” I shout.

  “I’m turning it on. If you’re that nervous about someone tracking you, we can leave your phone here, and we’ll go hide you somewhere else,” Aria says. Like it’s that easy. She walks out of the room with her eyes glued to her phone. Ever since the guys left Sunday morning, her phone hasn’t left her hands. After everything on the phone loads, it shows I have two notifications. A voicemail and a text. The voicemail is from Sienna. I call and listen.

  “Hey, girl. Thank you for letting me know you’re safe. It’ll be our secret. Just know, you have a lot of people worried about you. Come home soon. Love you.”

  I wish I could go home. I miss her, Minx and all the other girls. So much. The text message is from a number I don’t have saved, but I recognize it anywhere.

  From Sketch: Ready to listen without reacting. No judgment, as always.

  The text has Sunday’s date on it. Sienna must have called Sketch after she got my voicemail. How do I have two of the greatest best friends in the Universe, and I can’t even talk to them? I suck.

  “Are you okay,” Elena asks.

  “Hmm?” I lift my eyes from my phone. “Yeah. I’m fine. You’ll stay with me?”

  “Of course,” she replies. “Do you want him to come here? I can get Aria and Harper to leave.”

  “Maybe we should go to him. That way, if it gets to be too much, we can leave,” I suggest.

  “I’m good with whatever makes you feel most comfortable.”

  With the courage building inside me, I decide to text Sketch.

  To Sketch: Ready to talk.

  Seconds later, my phone vibrates in my hand. I’m staring at the screen, but I haven’t opened the text yet.

  “What happened,” Elena asks.

  “He texted back. I didn’t expect him to text back so fast,” I admit.

  “What did he say?”

  “I don’t know. I haven’t opened it yet,” I tell her.

  “I’ll go tell Aria and Harper to head out for a few hours,” she says. “I don’t think you’re going anywhere.”

  She walks out of the room and I bring myself to open the text.

  From Sketch: Name a time and place and I’ll be there.

  To Sketch: Aria’s house and come whenever.

  From Sketch: I’ll be there in 20.

  There’s a tightness in my chest and my heart beats a little faster.

  “Did you read the text,” Elena asks.

  “He’ll be here in twenty minutes.” I’m still staring at my phone. This is all too real now.

  “It’s going to be okay, Wren. I’ll be here with you the whole time. If at any point you want him to leave, say the word and I’ll get him out.”

  “We’ll be back later,” Aria calls as she and Harper walk out the front door. Elena takes my phone out of my hand, setting it on the coffee table.

  “Breathe. We’ll get through this together.” Elena sits on the couch and wraps her arm around my shoulder.

  I finally start to calm down some when the doorbell rings. I jump off the couch and rush to my room.

  I can hear Elena from my room. “Hey Sketch, Diesel. Come on in.”

  “I had a feeling she would have you stay with her,” Sketch says. “I hope you don’t mind Diesel being here.”

  “Not at all. Can I get y’all anything to drink?” Elena says. There’s some whispering and then nothing. Seconds later, Sketch is standing in my doorway.

  “Hey, Little Bird,” he says softly. “Can I come in?”

  “This was a bad idea,” I say. He walks in and sits at the end of my bed.

  “You’ve never been so afraid to talk to me.” There’s a hint of sadness in his tone. “Did I do something to warrant that?”

  “No, you didn’t.”

  “But someone did.” It’s not a question. I pull my legs up to my chest, hugging my knees. Sketch scoots closer. “Wren, talk to me. Please?”

  I don’t respond right away. “If I do, you have to promise me something.”

  “Anything.”

  “I already know what I’m going to tell you is going to make you mad. Not at me." I assure him. “You have to promise me you won’t do anything rash or stupid.”

  He quirks an eyebrow. “I promise I won’t do anything rash or stupid.”

  I let out a heavy sigh. He’s sitting right by me. Not touching me, but there’s this small volt of electricity between us. It’s something that’s always been between us. Anytime I try to ignore it, I fail.

  “Something happened with Zack,” I tell him. His eyes shift and I can tell he’s already pissed. Sketch has always been good at keeping his cool. He’s never been one to easily anger. He also has never liked Zack but tried to keep that to himself.

  I continue. “Sketch, listen to me. I do not want you to seek revenge or anything, okay?”

  “I hear you, but I won’t make you a promise I can’t keep,” he grits out.

  “Then I can’t tell you more.” I turn my head away, so I’m staring at the wall. “I know better than anyone how much Zack deserves to be put through hell tenfold. I also know how powerful his family is and what they could do to you, to Shade, or to the whol
e club. I’m not willing to risk something happening to any of you.” Out of the corner of my eye, I watch as his face sobers.

  “Little Bird.” He grabs my hand. When I don’t look at him, his finger comes to my chin. Gently, he tilts my face toward him. “Do you honestly have such little faith in me? In the Savage Menaces? We’ve faced powerful people before and we’re still standing. We don’t scare easily.” He pauses. The wheels are turning in his head. “I promise I won’t do anything without thinking it through.”

  11

  Sketch

  Whatever Zack did to Wren has really done a number on her. I have my own thoughts about what he could have done, and every one of them makes my blood boil. I’m surprised she doesn’t believe the Savage Menaces MC could go up against Zack or his family. At the same time, Shade does keep her as sheltered as he can from anything going on with the club. Something I don’t fully agree with.

  She lets out a heavy sigh and I give her hand a light squeeze. I’ve already come up with a few ways to get back at Zack. I’ll narrow my choices down once she tells me what he did to her.

  “We were doing some heavy making out when he wanted to take things further,” Wren tells me. Already, my blood heats up. Her eyes look past me, locked on a spot on the wall, as if she’s lost in a memory. “I told him no. Told him I wasn’t ready.” A single tear falls down her cheek. I squeeze her hand again, reminding her I’m right here with her. My breathing shallows as she continues.

  “He smacked me across the face and yelled for me to shut up, that I had kept him waiting long enough, teased him for too long. With my hands pinned above my head, he ripped my pants and panties off. I screamed at him to stop. Which caused him to punch me this time and almost knocked me out.”

  Tears are streaming down her face. My heart rate picks up, and it’s becoming more difficult to keep a level head the more she tells me. That piece of shit excuse for a man is asking for a one-way ticket to Hades. Wren takes a deep breath before carrying on.