Tainted Bastard (Tainted Knights 4)

“Wait!” London’s exclaimed command had us looking at her. “Are you two…together?”

Aubree rolled her eyes. “Of course they are, idiot. Get with the program, London. Roanna has had it bad for this douchebag since day one.”

“Aubree!” Roanna hissed.

“What?” she asked innocently.

I pressed into my girl. “I’ve had it bad since day one, too,” I confessed close to her ear.

She melted into me. Groaning, I stepped in behind her, keeping a hand on her hip to lock her in place against me. Over her head, I dared the two Blondes to say anything, to tease her. They were her friends, they loved and protected her, but I would annihilate anyone who upset Roanna—including them.

The two of them glared back, but when I didn’t even blink, they grinned, and I felt like I’d just passed some kind of test.

“Ugh, let’s go sit down,” London whined when she returned with our next round of drinks. “There’s an empty couch over there.”

“Yeah, hold on. Let me get Genesis.” Aubree walked over to where Genesis was still making out with the same guy. Taking hold of the back of the other Blonde’s shirt, Aubree pulled her away from the guy.

The guy protested, grabbing Genesis’s arm, re

fusing to release her. I watched over my beer as he got in Aubree’s face, yelling at her, spittle flying out of his mouth. I tensed, ready to step in if needed, but Roanna and London didn’t even seem to notice or care about the confrontation going on with the smaller of the Blondes.

Aubree stood there, listening to whatever the douchebag was saying with a bored tilt of her chin. She seemed more laid-back than Genesis or London most of the time, but I’d seen her lose her cool a few times since meeting her. She was slow to anger, but once she reached her limit, she was feisty as fuck.

She remained motionless, her expression blank, letting the guy have his say. Then he straightened and turned his back on her, his hand still gripping Genesis’s wrist. When he started to walk away, Aubree popped her neck left and right, her fists clenching and unclenching. Her face still blank, she grabbed the guy by the back of the head, her fingers tightening around the roots of his sun-streaked hair and jerked him backward.

He roared in pain, but then it was her turn to start yelling at him, right in his ear. With the music so loud, I couldn’t hear anything she said to him, but when she was done, she pushed him away forcefully. Taking Genesis’s now free hand, Aubree guided the other Blonde over to us.

“Ah, come on, Aubree,” the other chick whined, and I realized she was drunk as fuck. “You’re ruining my fun.”

“I’m saving you from something you can’t get rid of. Like an STD or a baby. As sloshed as you are, there’s no way you would remember to make him wrap it up, dumbass.” Moving past us, she pushed Genesis toward the couch London was already making herself comfortable on.

Sitting down beside Aubree, I pulled Roanna onto my lap.

“What the fuck?” Genesis slurred. “You two together?”

“Leave them alone, Gen,” London ordered, pushing a bottle of water into her hand. “Hydrate so you don’t have a hangover tomorrow.”

“Want to dance?” Roanna asked, more at ease now that she’d had a few drinks.

“I don’t dance.” Her bottom lip pouted out, and I groaned. “Take Aubree and dance. I’ll watch you from here.”

“But I want to dance with you.”

“This music sucks, Ro. I can’t dance to this shit.”

She glanced longingly at the dance floor. “You can just stand there, and I’ll dance around you. Please?”

That please fucking did it. Cursing under my breath, I followed her downstairs to the dance floor. It was packed down there, but she didn’t seem to care. I blocked her off enough space so no one would bump into her as she danced, and I stood there drinking my third beer while she had her fun. She was in her element, as if she was onstage again, performing for everyone.

She hypnotized me all over again with the sway of her hips, the way her entire body seemed in sync with every beat of the music. There was no crowd, only me and Roanna.

I finished off the beer and put the empty on a passing waitress’s tray before grasping Roanna by the waist and pulling her to me for a kiss. Her fingers skimmed up my chest seductively, but her eyes were full of shyness when she drew back. Smiling, she turned her back to me, rubbing her body against me as she danced for me and me alone.

“Hey!” some chick just off the dance floor to my left called out.

Roanna turned back to face me, lifting a brow at me flirtatiously. “Thanks for dancing with me. I don’t do it a lot, but I knew with you here, no one would bother me.”

“Sin. Hey. Over here.”