Damned Sinner Read online

  Damned Sinner

  The Jayne Series

  Jami Denise

  First Edition

  Copyright © November 2014 by Jami Denise

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any person, living or dead, or any events or occurrences, is purely coincidental. The characters and story lines are created from the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  CONTENT WARNING: This story contains scenes of an explicit, erotic, or violent nature and is intended for adults. 18+ Story includes graphic language, violence, and sexual situations.

  Cover design by Mayhem Cover Creations

  Edited by Marti Lynch

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Disclaimer

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Note from the Author

  Also By Jami Denise

  About the Author

  Dedication

  To my Grandpa Ron—It takes one to know one.

  What I wouldn’t do to have you here to share this with me.

  Chapter One

  Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall.

  My knuckles whitened with strain as I gripped the steering wheel. Considering everything I’d gone through in a matter of six months, it was hard to believe the rage I felt watching some punk-ass kid flirt with a girl. I should’ve been ass out of that drab town, but a little blonde had taken over all rational thought. So there I was—parked in front of a small café, stalking her like a fucking creep.

  I had no right to follow her, but that didn’t stop me. She wasn’t mine to want or keep, but she was mine to protect. A substantial part of my already-damaged heart broke when I let her go, but it had to be done. She didn’t belong with me, or in my world. She was too young, too sweet, and too naïve. The only thing in store for her if she’d stayed was more corruption and pain. The most heinous crime I’d ever committed was hurting her. If I hadn’t already ensured my free ride to hell, soiling that precious woman sure as fuck settled it.

  She was my sin; the tender temptation I would ache for until I swallowed my last breath. Nothing, no matter how decadent, would ever amount to her taste—her sweet, sumptuous taste. I would feel her in my bones, crave her with my body, and yearn for her with my soul, but I would never allow myself to keep her.

  I was the bad to her good. Filthy where she was pure. She was my weakness—I couldn’t be her downfall. I’d failed everyone I’d ever given a shit about. I wouldn’t add her to my list of failures.

  I couldn’t have her—not in my world. It just didn’t work that way. Protecting her was a completely separate thing. I would care for her and protect her even if I had to do it from afar. I’d have to leave her alone and eventually move on and deal with the mess my life had become. She’d do the same. Move on, forget about me, and live her life.

  The thought alone made me want to puke. It was a double-edged sword. What I wanted and what was best for her were completely at odds. I’d never been a selfless man, but Kelsey brought out a need to give, and I wanted her enough to give her the freedom she deserved.

  As soon as she walked away from the table she was waiting on, the door to my car was open and I was moving across the street, taking long, steady strides toward the little motherfucker with the grabby hands. He didn’t know what he was doing, or what kind of shit storm he’d brought on himself, but he’d think twice about touching my girl once I was through with him.

  He went back to wiping down tables—little pissant that he was—but looked up when he heard my heavy footsteps approach. His eyes widened, and the look that crossed his face when he realized he was about to get his ass kicked was priceless. He backed away from the table, eyes wide, and tried to run, but I wasn’t having any of that. He wanted to play grab ass? Well, I wanted a little round of kick ass.

  “You!” I yelled, picking up my steps. “Don’t fucking run, you little bitch. It’ll only piss me off, and when I catch up with you, I’m taking it out on your ass!”

  He dropped the towel in his hands and raised his arms above his head, as if that’d stop me. “What the hell?” he cried.

  My brows dipped, and I shook my head. “You know Kelsey Franklin?”

  With a jerky nod, he spun around, obviously looking for a way out. There wasn’t any. I was going to fuck him up.

  As I reached him, I could see he was shaking, and that made me smile. “I asked you a question, boy.”

  “Yes! Okay, yes. She works here. She’s inside.”

  I grabbed his shirt collar and yanked him up off his feet, pulling him close so our faces were inches apart.

  “You listen to me, you little prick,” I spat. “If I ever see or hear about you touching Kelsey again, I will break your neck. You don’t talk to her or look at her. If you touch her, you die. Are we clear?”

  He gulped, nodding awkwardly in the position I was holding him in. “Good. I’ll be watching—you can count on that.”

  I dropped him to the ground and walked away, my gut churning. It was a shitty thing to do, but the thought of someone else touching her made me lose my mind. One day, it would happen, and I hoped like hell by then I wouldn’t care.

  Chapter Two

  Six months later

  Long blonde hair spilled over my chest as she rode me wildly. Reaching forward, I grasped her tits and gave them a tight squeeze. I threw my head back and closed my eyes. I was close, but not quite there. It felt like she’d been going at it for hours, and I couldn’t wait to get off and get her the fuck out of there.

  “Yes, yes,” she wailed. “You’re so good, Vince. Give me that huge cock!”

  I groaned, but not from pleasure. Usually with the pros, they knew when to stay quiet. This one never shut the fuck up, and my nerves were shot.

  “I’m not paying you to talk about my cock. Shut your mouth, and do your job. Get. Me. Off!”

  She looked down at me, startled—eyes wide and jaw slack. My words were cold, but I wasn’t in the right state of mind to spare her feelings. I shut my eyes again, and she finally figured out what I wanted her to do and stayed quiet. As long as she didn’t say anything, I could imagine... pretend. Finally, I’d had enough. I couldn’t take it anymore and pushed her off my lap, spun her around, and slammed her back down on top of me. I couldn’t look at her anymore.

  Her hair wasn’t right, her eyes were the wrong color, and her tits were way too big. She wasn’t what I wanted. She was just another cheap and easy substitute for the real thing.

  Bracing herself on my thighs, she started bouncing and grinding, giving me everything she had to make me happy. That’s what I’d paid for, and she knew her job. It was a shitty way to think, and the more I did it, the worse I felt.

  But that didn’t stop me.

  I grabbed her hips and rammed into her over and over again, hell bent on getting it over with
. A little fix and a quick fuck. That’s what everything amounted to nowadays.

  I was like a caged animal—angry and lost. Most of my time was spent piss drunk, and the rest of the time I tried to forget everything I’d lost; Kelsey, Jayne, my business, and even my identity. Doyle Maguire caused a tornado of hell to rain down on all of us, and my name had suffered. The Feds were thick, the local cops were up my ass, and almost all of my associates were weary of doing business with me or my girls.

  I was suddenly a risk. Closed out.

  ****

  I groaned, lifting my head from the pillow, and reached around for my phone. Out of the corner of my eye, I noted the time on the screen. Eight a.m. There was only one person with big enough balls to be calling me at that time of the morning.

  Flynn. That fucker.

  I slid the screen open and held it to my ear, clenching my eyes shut against the threat of light. I hadn’t remembered turning on the lamp, but it felt bright as hell.

  “What the fuck do you want?”

  He chuckled smugly, and I wanted to reach through the phone and punch him in the face. I had a hell of a hangover, and I wasn’t in the mood for his smart mouth.

  “You’re charming in the morning, sweetheart.”

  “I don’t have time for this,” I grunted.

  “Make time,” he snapped. “I have something to talk to you about, and you need to be awake to hear it.”

  I jackknifed out of bed, scrubbed my free hand over my face to wipe away the fatigue, and sat back down with a sigh. “What’s going on?”

  I didn’t like the tone of his voice. We’d been through too much, and I wasn’t sure I had the strength for anything else to happen.

  “Jayne did something, and you’re not going to be happy. I’m warning you, though. Don’t yell at her. You make my girl cry—or cause her to get bitchy—and I’ll kick your ass.”

  I cursed under my breath. There was no telling what the girl had done. She was the thorn in my side, but my favorite affliction. It didn’t matter what she’d done—I would deal with it. If she was in danger, I’d handle that too. If she was sad, I’d cheer the bitch up. I’d taken care of her longer than anyone else. I had her back. It was all good.

  “Put her on the phone.”

  He laughed again, clearly enjoying himself while he annoyed the shit out of me. “She wants me to tell you.”

  I rolled my eyes and reached over to grab my smokes from the side table. “So fucking tell me. It’s a little too early to dick around, don’t you think?”

  “You aren’t smoking in my suite, are you?” he asked.

  “Eat me,” I retorted. “Are you going to tell me so I can go back to sleep? For the love of God, I was up until four-thirty this morning trying to save your fucking gold mine, asshole.”

  He was lucky I liked him. He was really lucky my girl liked him. If it weren’t for her, I would kick his ass, but displeasing Jayne wasn’t usually on my list of things to do. It was always all about Janie.

  “You aren’t reaping the benefits of that gold mine?” he asked.

  I took a long look around the suite. His suite. It was prime real estate, and much better accommodations than a fifty-dollar weeknight twin bed at one of the casinos. I had to admit—I was reaping the benefits.

  Touché.

  “Just put her on the phone. I want to hear it from her.”

  He groaned, and then I could hear him moving through the house toward wherever she was hiding. I smiled and imagined her cowering in a corner somewhere, afraid to face the big bad wolf. It wasn’t likely. Knowing her, she was plotting more damage in her little lair of evil girl crap.

  He passed the phone over, and I could tell he was covering it with his hand while he talked to her. They were a couple of idiots.

  “Hi Vin,” she chirped. “Did Flynn tell you?”

  I chuckled. Real subtle. “No, Janie. He’s too much of a pussy to tell me what you’ve done now. Why don’t you enlighten me?”

  She huffed. “I didn’t do anything. God, I thought he told you about our big news. We’re getting married.”

  Married? I already knew they were getting married... so I knew she was full of it. Shit, she called me about everything. The only thing she’d kept me in the dark about was when she took a shit. From the moment they moved into the cabin, it’d been constant text and phones updating me on her days. She was excited and proud of every little thing. Just learning how to cook or drive a stick shift excited her to no end, and I’d heard every minute of it—which I loved. She was happier than I’d ever seen her.

  That being said, something shady was going on. I knew her too well.

  “You had him call me at eight in the morning to tell me something I already knew?”

  I heard her breath hitch. Gotcha, baby.

  “Ugh. I just wanted to say it again. And I miss you.”

  Even though she couldn’t see me through the phone, I smiled. She’d have to tell me the truth eventually, but for the moment, I’d play her little game.

  “You sure you still want to be stuck with that asshole forever?” I teased.

  “Hey, I love this asshole. And yeah, I’m more than sure. You know how much dough I inherit if he dies? Ow!”

  That was my girl.

  “He’s already smacking you around? How much longer until he knocks you up and steals your shoes so you can’t leave the house?”

  She laughed, but it sounded more like she was starting to choke. Baby talk was a little uncomfortable for Jayne. Not so much for Flynn.

  “Oh God, don’t even go there. No, he just pinched my ass. He doesn’t like it when I talk about his life insurance policy. It’s huge—just like his...”

  “Yeah, I don’t need to hear it again.” I groaned. If baby talk was one of Flynn’s favorite subjects, his baby maker was one of hers.

  “So what has you so freaked out?”

  She sighed. “I don’t want to lie. It’s about Kelsey.”

  My ears perked up and my spine straightened. Sparking up the cigarette in my hand, I stood and walked to the window and stared out at the stagnant city while I waited to hear the blow. Knots instantly formed in my stomach, and my groin grew tight. Just hearing her name sounded like thunder in my ears.

  I cleared my throat. “What about her?”

  I couldn’t help the jolt of anxiety that pulsed through me. Jesus Christ... the scenarios that my mind conjured up were both depraved and terrifying.

  If she was hurt or in trouble, I would jump into action in a heartbeat. I would be there for her—no hesitation.

  “She’s back in Las Vegas. We gave her a job at The Maguire.”

  A long, painful silence followed her bombshell. I could hear her breathing through the phone, heavy and tentative, but I had no words for her. I was having a hard time breathing while I tried to comprehend what she was telling me.

  I cleared my throat and finally responded. She was probably shitting her pants wondering what I was thinking. Good.

  “That’s a fucking terrible mistake. What the hell is she thinking? What are you thinking, Jayne?”

  I was pissed. Kelsey had no business in Vegas. I couldn’t handle knowing she was there. Nothing good could come of it.

  “Vince,” she started, but I cut her off right away.

  “No. Listen, Jayne. My balls are in knots as it is—I don’t have time to worry about this kid.”

  She growled into the receiver, about as fierce as a wounded firefly. “First of all, she’s not a kid; she’s a young woman ready to start her life and have a little adventure. Her parents threw her out, and she’s miserable there anyway. She asked me for help, and for the first time in my life, I’m actually capable of helping someone—the right way.”

  “Shit,” I cursed under my breath. “I can’t believe this, Jayne.”

  “Don’t be so negative,” she said with an air of annoyance. “She’ll be working in concierge as Marcy’s assistant. She’ll learn the ropes and we’ll see where she’ll
go from there. She deserves a chance to start fresh and live a little.”

  I could hear the fight running out of her, and I felt like an ass. She wasn’t going to figure out my reason for being hesitant of having Kelsey in Vegas, and I wasn’t ready to discuss whatever it was I felt for Kelsey. But, the truth was, having Kelsey in Vegas was a powder keg, and I didn’t want to watch that explode.

  “You know better than anyone what a mistake it is to leave a young girl to her own devices in this town.”

  She sighed. “Whatever you say, Vince. Whatever you say.”

  I gritted my teeth. “When did this happen?”

  I figured I may as well go backward and start from the beginning. With Jayne, the conversation could go in several directions, and it appeared that she was ready to run around in circles to get her way. Unfortunately for her, I was dead tired, hungover like a motherfucker, and now five minutes into the conversation, extremely pissed off.

  Chapter Three

  All I could think about was getting the hell out of the casino and blowing off some steam. Cherise Maguire was late—again, and I was getting really fed up with her antics. The lady was a whack job if I’d ever seen one. It wasn’t that I didn’t like her—I did—but I was about to jump out of my skin if I didn’t get off the premises.

  Between my almost constant erection and the increasingly growing tension between me and Kelsey, I was ready to blow.

  The reason for my anxiety—and obvious hard-on—stood ten feet away from me, looking like a walking T-bone rare, and I was fucking starving.

  I was close to losing my damn mind, and after three days of watching Kelsey parade around, I was at my limit. I’d done a good job of avoiding her, which made me the biggest dick alive, but there wasn’t any other way to handle the situation.

  I wanted her. Still. Worse than ever, I wanted her.

  “Mrs. Maguire is waiting for you. She’s in the suite.”

  I turned, glaring at Collins. That guy pissed me off just for breathing. His very existence annoyed the shit out of me. The only reason I hadn’t ditched his body in the desert was because he came in handy—especially when it came to Kelsey. I couldn’t tail her twenty-four hours a day, so I had to rely on him to be my eyes and ears. It was what he was good at, after all—being a creep.