by Joanna Blake
Like I said.
It was perfect.
About the Author
Thank you for reading Marked By The Devil! If you enjoyed this book please let me know on by reviewing on Amazon and Goodreads! You can find me on Facebook, Twitter, or you can email me at: [email protected]
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Coming soon:
The Untouchables Book 3
Rock Gods Book 3
The start of a NEW series!
And a super secret collaboration with author Bella Lovewins!
Other works by Joanna Blake:
BRO'
A Bad Boy For Summer
PLAYER
PUSH
Go Long
Go Big
Cockpit
Hot Shot
Stud Farm (The Complete Delancey Brothers Saga)
Torpedo
Cuffed (The Untouchables MC)
Mean Machine (The Untouchables MC)
Wanted By The Devil (Devil’s Riders MC Book 1)
Ride With The Devil (Devil’s Riders MC Book 2)
Trust The Devil (Devil’s Riders MC Book 3)
Dance With The Devil (Devil’s Riders MC Book 4)
Dare Me (ROCK GODS Book 1)
Slay Me (ROCK GODS Book 2)
Turn the page for excerpts from Joanna Blake's Mean Machine, Torpedo, Slay Me, and Cockpit.
Acknowledgments
LJ Anderson, Mayhem Cover Design
Valorie Clifton, Editing
Deposit Photos, Cover Photo
Just One More Page Book Promotions
Mean Machine Excerpt
Mason
“No thank you, ma’am.”
I turned away, finding something else to do that didn’t put me right in front of the cougar making eyes at me. She’d made me an indecent proposal when I delivered her drink. It wasn’t the first time, either.
I was behind the bar, forcing Jaken to wait tables. He’d been my bartender for years and was a damn good one. But I was the boss and I was tired of running around like a chicken without it’s head.
So I pulled rank.
It was much more relaxing behind the bar. But there was just one problem. The women.
My place used to be a biker bar. I’d eased it more into a rustic country road juke joint after the drama from last year. There’d been a murder in the parking lot, and Cass had gotten dragged into it.
That’s how she’d met Connor, the bastard. It’s not that I didn’t like him, I did. But I didn’t want him to know it.
Not after he’d fallen for my girl.
Anyway, the place was much more mainstream these days. The bikers still came in, but not in droves. Now it was more of a colorful bar with damn good food. But try telling that to the ladies.
They wanted bikers and they weren’t shy about asking for what they wanted.
I was a biker, even though I wasn’t active in the club. I was a member for life, whether I liked it or not. Just wearing leather and having wheels was like catnip to these chicks. So, I spend a lot of time fending off advances. Some that were not too subtle.
At the moment, it was a woman named Mag who was making eyes at me from the other end of the bar. I kept moving so she couldn’t get too close. I could tell she wanted someone to get rough with her, and that had never been my idea of a good time, even back in the day.
I groaned, rubbing the back of my neck. I used to hide in my office if I got wind of a woman like Mag on the prowl. They were easy to spot, and Jaken warned me sometimes too. But until I hired more staff, that was going to be impossible.
It was still early and destined to get worse. I served another round and snuck up the stairs in the back to get some peace and quiet. I sat heavily in my old leather desk chair. It had conformed to my body over the years and was super comfortable. Almost an easy chair.
I’d even fallen asleep in it a couple of times.
Okay, more than a couple.
I had five minutes tops before I had to get back out to the floor. Jaken could run drinks and orders and man the bar for a little while. I closed my eyes and heaved a sigh of relief.
Of course, someone knocked at the door almost right away.
“Yeah?”
I tried not to sound surly but I was. I was surly.
“Boss? Someone here to see you.”
“Who?”
Jaken raised his eyebrows meaningfully.
“Someone about the ad in the paper.”
I sat up straight.
“Okay.” Jaken turned to go but I waved him back. “Wait. Anything I should know? Does she seem crazy?”
“Not even a little.”
“Anything else?”
He smiled.
“Well, let’s just say that if this one falls in love with you too, you won’t be complaining. I’ll send her back.”
I was still frowning over that last comment when I heard a soft rap at the door.
“Come in.”
The door opened and time stood still. I stared at the girl standing shyly in the entryway, my hand frozen in mid-air. Long auburn hair and hazel eyes in a heartbreakingly pretty face, with a sprinkle of freckles over the bridge of her dainty, slightly upturned nose.
I wasn’t thinking coherently, so that was all I saw. Until she moved. I cleared my throat and gestured to the seat.
“You can sit.”
She nodded shyly and took the seat opposite my desk. I barely had time to register the threadbare coat and long legs encased in faded jeans. She was thin. Nervous. She clutched a handbag on her lap, holding on for dear life.
Like her coat, the purse was beat up. But everything else about her was fresh as a daisy. Her shiny hair, her glowing skin.
I wondered how old she was. Mid-twenties, I thought. A couple of years older than Cassie.
Her clothes had seen better days but it only made her beauty more obvious. She was flawless. Neat as a pin. But it was the serious look in her eyes that took my breath away.
This girl was not about to start professing her love for me or modifying her uniform to show off her feminine assets. She was too shy and she had too much dignity. Her eyes said it all.
And the colors. Her eyes were a rich combination of green and gray and yellow. Not dark, like hazel tended to be. They were bright, lit up like the colors of mother nature in all her glory.
They actually sparkled.
“What’s your name?”
“Shell. Michelle.”
Her voice was soft and melodious. Sweet and feminine and alluring. It did something to me. Made me want to lean forward and hang on every word.
The name suited her, I thought. Shells were delicate and pretty, like her. And she looked like she was the type to take long walks on the beach.
I shook my head. I had to focus. She was pretty enough to be in one of those natural beauty commercials, but she was here for a job, not to be gawked at.
“I’m Mason. This is my place.”
She nodded earnestly and I felt my insides twist. I was already trying to figure out a way to let her down easy. I needed a waitress badly, but this girl was trouble. Not only was she too fragile looking for the rough crowd we got sometimes, but she would be a constant distraction to everyone who worked here.
Especially me.
Then again… Cass had handled it. She was a beautiful girl, too. And even a little younger when she worked here. Maybe it wasn’t fair to discount her, just because the girl seemed so shy.
“Have you waited tables before?”
Again, she nodded. Not one for talking then. Maybe that wasn’t a bad thing.
“What kinds of places?”
“A couple of diners, a sports bar, and a chain place. You know, endless bread bowls”
I smiled at that.
“Are they really endless?”
She bit her lip and shrugged. Obviously, my jokes were not landing. I felt like a damn fool, truth be told.
&nb
sp; I leaned back in my chair, feeling like my insides were all twisted up. I had to get rid of her. I’d scare her off, then I wouldn’t have to be mean. That would be best for everyone.
“This place can get pretty rough sometimes. Especially late at night. Think you can handle it?”
She nodded. This time I raised my eyebrows, encouraging her to answer me. She was making me nervous. I needed to know she could speak.
Plus, I wanted to hear her voice again.
“I can. Handle it, I mean.”
She held up her keychain. Pepper spray. I looked at her eyes quickly, seeing something there I didn’t like.
She had seen trouble before, without a doubt.
“You run into a problem out there? Somebody messing with you?”
She shrugged.
“No. Just working late shifts. I’ve had a few close calls.”
It chilled my blood, the thought of someone trying to hurt this beautiful girl. It really did.
“I hope you don’t think that’s enough to protect you if someone really wants to hurt you.”
I sounded like her father. Or a cop, for God’s sake. I was seriously fucking furious that someone had bothered this beautiful, delicate looking girl.
She smiled and I inhaled, holding my breath. It felt like the sun came out. My office wasn’t dark anymore. The day wasn’t overcast anymore outside the window behind me.
Or at least, it felt that way.
“I know. I always ran. But I had this ready just in case.”
“Good.”
I made the decision without thinking. I just opened my mouth and the words came out.
“Pay is eight bucks an hour, plus tips. You keep all of those. We are short staffed so you can work as much as you want. We’ll feed you, one meal per shift. And you can take a fifteen minute break every couple of hours, as long as it’s not super busy. Sound good?”
“Yes. Sounds great.”
“You just need to fill out some paperwork and we’ll get you in the payroll system. Do you have photo ID?”
She nodded eagerly and fished in her bag for her wallet. I felt my gut turn over when she pulled it out. A popular cartoon character was printed on the front.
She was a kid. Just a kid.
So why was I fantasizing about pulling her onto the desk and having my way with her?
She was holding her ID out to me expectantly, I realized. I glanced at the card, clocking her age. Mid-twenties, thank God.
I might be acting like a lech, but at least I wasn’t a dirty old man.
“I just need to make a copy of this.”
She nodded, looking so relieved that I almost cried. She must be in dire straights. I glanced at her shoes on the way out of the office to the copy machine in the hallway.
Yep. Just as I thought. They were lace up booties, scuffed up like crazy. The girl was on hard times. But she had pulled herself together nicely, all the same.
I made a photocopy of her ID for her file, then hit the button and made another. This one I folded up and put in my pocket. I couldn’t have told you why I did that though.
“Here you go.”
I handed her back her ID, then pulled a t-shirt from a box in the corner.
“Is small okay?”
She nodded, clutching the t-shirt against her like it was a baby. I frowned again, deciding I was going to get to the bottom of who this girl was, and what was going on with her.
“So, when can you start?”
A huge smile lit up her face. It hit me like a punch to the gut. My chest felt like it cracked open, but it didn’t hurt. It felt fucking amazing.
Her beauty literally overwhelmed me.
I realized in that moment I had made a very big mistake. Huge. Monumental.
“Right now, if that’s okay. I just need to run out to my car.”
I nodded and she was off like a shot. I blinked a few times once she was gone. Then I reached for the bottle of bourbon I kept on my desk and poured myself a drink. I had a feeling I was going to need it.
“Mason, you are a bona fide idiot.”
Torpedo Excerpt
Gabe
"Hmmfff, this is good."
I grinned at the gorgeous girl who was staring out the window. She was trying not to look at me, I realized. To give me privacy so I could eat.
It was considerate.
But I didn't like it.
Not one bit.
And this sandwich was damn good. Delicious even. She'd done something with basic turkey and made it delicious. Avocado, tomato and sliced onions. A touch of mustard and... I think she'd put a little salt and vinegar on the veggies.
I smacked my lips.
Yep, that was it. Oil and vinegar. That's the kind of sandwich you got in an authentic Italian cafe. I looked at her with newfound respect. Tabitha was full of surprises.
The girl could cook.
I let my eyes travel over her curves, wondering what else she could do. That led to a couple of visual images that were definitely not PG. Or even PG 13. More like R verging on those soft-core movies they showed late at night on certain cable channels.
The 'movies' with the terrible actors and actresses with fake boobs. There was nothing fake on Tabitha though. I licked my lips, looking her over.
Hmmmfff... not one damn thing. I tilted my head to the side, trying to imagine her naked. And smiling. And-
"Are you okay?"
Tabitha ran across the room and thwaked me on the back. I coughed out the bite I'd been slowly chewing. I had not been choking. I had simply been distracted by her bodacious-
"Gabe!"
She was staring at me, reaching for my mouth. I realized she was going to start manually clearing my air pipe in about three seconds if I didn't say anything. I guess she was a pretty good nurse after all. Or nurse-in-training.
"I'm fine!"
I was, however, hard as a rock. Tabby was kneeling between my knees, her hands on my thighs. It was an almost-about-to-give-head position. I stared at her, my eyes devouring her. I wanted to remember this moment, for later.
She smelled so good, like vanilla and cinnamon. She looked even better than she smelled, with her wide eyes and creamy skin, those gorgeous lips of hers parted unconsciously. It was too much. I felt my cock lurch in response.
I moaned. Loudly.
She leaned back, moving her hands away from my knees.
"Did I hurt you?"
"No. I just-"
I grabbed a magazine and dropped it on my lap.
"I'm fine."
She looked at me suspiciously, as if she knew I was lying. Or kind of lying. I was fine other than having a nuclear warhead in my pants. But she knew something was up.
Clearly, Tabitha's bullshit-o-meter was a finely tuned piece of equipment.
That didn't surprise me actually. She hadn't had an easy time of it back in high school. From what I could tell, the guys were always after her but she didn't have a lot of friends.
She had a reputation as kind of a tough girl actually.
She didn't look tough to me though. She never had. She looked... just over it. The girl was not easily impressed. I realized we had that in common.
"So, what have you been up to? Since high school?"
She narrowed her eyes at me. I could see her chewing the inside of her cheek. It made me want to yank her down on my lap and-
"This isn't a social call, Gabe. I'm here to take care of you."
I held up my hands and smiled cajolingly. Thankfully the magazine didn't slip. That would have been embarrassing.
And it would have ruined the plans I was making. My dirty mind was very, very busy today. First, I had plans to get her in bed, and then I had lots of ideas what to do once I had her there.
My earlier resistance to having her as my aid was rapidly fading. No, I did not want this ridiculously hot woman seeing me like this. But maybe I could use it to my advantage.
Gain her sympathy and all that.
Besides, I never bac
ked away from a challenge.
Somehow, having her resist my attempts to draw her out was making me even more determined. She couldn't be more appealing if she was covered in whipped cream with cherries on top.
But she wasn't making it easy. Tabby was a tough nut to crack. I could not stop myself from wanting to crack her shell wide open.
As annoying as it was to be stuck in a wheelchair, I was going to use whatever I could to get Tabby in my bed. I was going to get this girl, once and for all. Not just once or twice either. I wanted a year long fuck-a-thon. Maybe longer.
I'd have to soften her up first though. I smiled to myself, thinking that wouldn't be a problem. I knew how to charm someone when I needed to.
By the time I was walking, she'd be at my beck and call.
"But I need to stay in good spirits. Isn't that part of healing? I thought I read that fifty percent of all healing was mental."
I gave her a sad look.
"I'm... lonely. Stuck down here by myself. I'm just asking you to talk, not for your hand in marriage."
She stared at me, her eyes searching. She glanced at her watch. Then she shrugged.
"Okay, fine. You don't need to take any pills for a few more hours. What do you want to talk about?"
I leaned back in my seat, mentally rubbing my hands together. And then undressing her. And then-
"I wondered what happened to you after high school. Fill me in."
She looked more than a little uncomfortable, but I didn't care. I was curious. And it wasn't like I was going to tell anyone.
"What do you want to know?"
I smiled.
"Everything."
Slay Me Excerpt
Nick
“I’d like to thank my fans…”
Nick stared bleary eyed at the golden statue in his hands as the crowd went absolutely wild.
“For this award.”
He leaned toward the busty blond pop star who was presenting.
“What’s the award for, doll?”
She said something and he made a face, unable to hear a word of it over the crowd.
