Tainted Bastard (Tainted Knights 4)

Sin

The beer was cold, and the crowd was full of infinite possibilities for a night of fun. I let my gaze skim across the faces of all the chicks as I finished the bottle, taking my time. Beside me, Gray was doing the same thing, just like Kale and Cash were doing a few feet away at the bar. This place was a one-night-hookup paradise, and we had been living like kings here for the past year.

Onstage, as the new band began to play, my gaze went to the bassist I’d handed over my bass guitar to just a few minutes ago. She was hot, but she seemed high-maintenance, something I couldn’t stand. I flirted with her, but there was no chance in hell I was touching that bitch. She reminded me too much of my stepmother, and I didn’t need that nightmare running around in my head if I fucked her.

“We’ll listen to one song, and we can go,” Gray assured me as he lifted his own beer to his lips and drained it. “I’m expecting a call from Kas anyway.”

Snorting, I leaned back against the bar top and watched the other members of Blonde Bombshells. Gray was so whipped, and he didn’t even realize it. Kassa was on the other side of the country, yet she was his first thought in every situation. It was cute and pathetic all at once. My idiot friend loved that girl more than any thing or any person in the universe, only he wouldn’t let himself be with her.

Dumbass.

The song the band was playing was a cover song, something we did all the time because fresh songs were hard to come by. Cash and Jace were constantly writing, but not all of their songs got the band’s vote. Kin, however, had written us a few that we’d recorded and Emmie had been passing out to record labels. Girl had some sick talent at putting pen to paper and coming up with pure gold.

This song the Blondes were playing had a long instrumental opening, focusing on the guitarist and the bassists. The guitarist had some mad skills, that much was clear, but for some reason, my gaze kept going back to the girl with the microphone. She was totally into the music, her smile hypnotizing the crowd at times.

And then she lifted the mic to her lips, and I was suddenly pulled under the same spell everyone else in the room had fallen victim to.

Holy shit, the girl had some pipes on her. The hair on my arms stood up, and all I could do was watch her, transfixed as her amazing voice awed every single person in the club. My heart seemed to pound along to the beat of the drum, and all I wanted to do was grab her and hide her away from everyone else, keep her for my entertainment only.

My eyes swept over her, taking in the beauty I’d noticed just moments ago when I was only a few feet away on that same stage with her. Her platinum blond hair was waist-length, her makeup perfect without being overdone. She wore a pair of short leather shorts that barely covered her ass, over a pair of fishnet stockings. Her T-shirt was shredded and draped over a leather bralette that pushed up her generous tits with just the right amount of cleavage, giving every man in the room very, very bad thoughts.

Fuck, she was sexy, and I couldn’t help wondering just how good she would taste on my tongue.

“Girl’s got it,” Gray said with a laugh, clapping his hands and throwing up horns when the song came to an end. “Cutter got the perfect replacements. I was worried for him, thought he couldn’t find anyone to draw in the crowd like we did for this place. Looks like I was wrong.”

All I could do was nod. Even though her voice had faded, the next song was starting, and all I wanted was to stand there and listen to her all fucking night.

My friend nudged my arm. “You ready?”

I shook my head, not even sparing him a glance, too enthralled by the witch onstage. “Nah, man. You go. Tell Kas I said hi.”

For the next fifty minutes, I stood there, hands in my front jeans pockets, not seeing anyone around me. Not drinking. Not fucking taking my eyes off the siren onstage. Her voice was calling me to her, and I was fighting it with everything inside of me.

When the set was over and the lights went out, only to come back on moments later, the stage was empty. I glanced around, trying to find the beauty who had twisted me inside and out with just the sound of her damn voice. But there was no sign of her or the other Blondes.

Knowing where to find her, I moved through the crowd, at times physically pushing people out of my way so I could make my way to the green room where the guys and I used to hang out before and after a show. The door was closed when I got there, and I knocked twice before opening it.

Inside, the five chicks were spread out across the two couches in the middle of the room, bottles of water in hand. My gaze zeroed in on the one who’d held me prisoner for the past hour. She was sitting between the drummer and the guitarist, swallowing water like she hadn’t had a drop in days.

But something was different about her now. Gone was the aura I’d seen floating around her while she was onstage. Gone was the smile that had only minutes before made me want to fall to my knees at her feet and beg her to never stop singing. She was still beautiful, still gorgeous, yet there was a coldness to her now.

Without even talking to her, I knew there was a wall up a hundred miles high, and it only intrigued me more. It was like she was Dr. Jekyll and Miss Hyde, one and the same, and the comparison made me think of Lzzy Hale. Fuck, this chick had a voice to rival even Lzzy’s.

“You get lost?” the drummer half growled, shifting protectively closer to the witch beside her.

“Wanted to say I was impressed. Good job tonight.”

“Thanks.” The bassist I’d flirted with earlier stood and took my arm. “Come sit with us. We need some eye candy to drool over while we catch our breath.”

I didn’t budge when she tried to pull me toward the couch she’d just vacated. I didn’t like to be touched often, and this chick was too much like my stepmother for me to allow her to get any closer than she already was. Pulling away from her, I moved to the only chair between the two couches that faced each other. As I sat down, my gaze went straight back to the witch.

“I’m Peyton,” the bassist introduced. “This is London, and over there are Aubree, Roanna, and Genesis.”

Roanna. It was different. I’d never heard it before, but I liked it. A lot.

“I’m Sin,” I said, wanting her to know my name.

Three of the five laughed, with the exception of Aubree and Roanna. “Oh, we know exactly who you are. Tainted Knights is wickedly talented, by the way. You guys are going to go places fast,” Peyton praised.