Dominic (Saint Brothers #1) (2 page)

The drive back to my apartment was uneventful and I jumped in the shower before rushing back out to head to work. It was going to be a long night, but much preferable to staying at the golf club and watching my sister getting treated like royalty.

Walking into the hospital and going through my usual routine of checking in and changing into my scrubs, I got ready for a hard night. Weekends were the busiest and despite what my parents thought about it, I knew that I was doing something important with my life. With a small smile to myself, I threw myself into my work.

Dominic

“Here you go. You look like you need it.” Lauren said as she passed the glass over the bar.

A double Jack. Perfect. Just what I needed. Downing it in one, I relished the burn in my throat. “Thanks, darlin’.”

“You deserve more than that after today.”

“It was nothing out of the ordinary for me.” I winked at her, trying to ease the tension. If anything, she would be the one that needed the drink, but she’d opted to throw herself back into her work. Keeping busy worked for Lauren.

“It was a big deal for me. Thank you. I can’t tell you how much.”

“Anytime.”

It hadn’t been a particularly hard day. It was more productive than anything. But I had the headache from hell working its way into my skull.

We were the kind of boys who were told we would amount to nothing when we had been back in school. It was kind of understandable. All four of us had quick tempers and we didn’t leave school with a handful of qualifications between us. But that shit isn’t the be-all and end-all. We had life experience. We had street smarts. And we had determination. When we wanted something, we went for it and let nothing get in our way, whether it was business or pussy, it was all the same. The Saint Brother’s always came out winners in the end.

Maze walked up to the bar, slipping onto the empty stool next to me. He looked as rough as hell. It wasn’t surprising really. He’d been up all night looking into some kind of new computer system they were installing at the office. He’d been working with Kellin and Austen since they started the business and handled all the digital work. Maze was a genuine computer whizz, which was how he got his name. He was like those goddamn mice that always got the cheese. Maze delivered without fail.

Maze had been working through the night and for most of the day on this new computer system. The dude was going to work himself into the ground. My brother’s wouldn’t be able to function without him working for them. They were the muscle and the connections and Maze had the know-how to make it work. They were a damn good team and the mix worked well.

None of us were dumb enough to think that he always kept to the legal routes when he was working a job, but he always got the right results so we weren’t going to complain. Sometimes you had to bend the law to get the job done. That was just the way of the world.

“All sorted?”

Maze sighed and ran a hand over his shaven head. “It wasn’t easy, but I got there in the end. Shame I had to miss out on all the fun with you lot, though.”

We had spent the morning in the office, sorting through some possible new connections, but the real action happened this afternoon. It had been a long time coming and I enjoyed every goddamn second of it.

This latest job had been particularly difficult. My brothers didn’t usually take on jobs from people that we knew personally. It didn’t usually work out for the best. If you came up with some dirt that they didn’t like, it could ruin a perfectly good friendship. People always liked to believe that they could handle hearing the truth, but when they were slapped around the face with it? The truth often hurt and they chose to shoot the messenger.

This situation had been slightly different, though. We had all been waiting for Lauren to come to us for a while now. The guy she had been involved with was a complete dick. At the very least, he was nowhere near good enough for her. At the worst, he was fucking poison. We had been biding our time, waiting to make our move. The wait had been a bitch but we couldn’t go meddling in her life without her go ahead. We could see that he was wrong for her, but it wasn’t our place to go wading in like that.

If only I had known just how bad that shit was getting, I’d have acted without her permission. He deserved everything that was coming to him.

Matt was a major dick. He came walking into my bar acting like he owned the place, like he owned Lauren. Matt was the biggest prick walking and I couldn’t wait to plaster his face all over the nearest wall from the moment I laid eyes on him. But, I’d refrained from doing anything, not wanting Lauren to get caught in the crossfire.

She was a great girl and no one’s fucking property. She was my bar manager and honestly, I didn’t know what I would do without her. I was shit at keeping the books and paperwork and she helped me to keep it all on track. She had come into this job a bubbly out-going woman and since that dick had moved in on her, she’d become withdrawn and nervous and a girl I hardly recognised.

It was one of those situations when you knew you had to follow your gut instincts. I knew that he was bad news from the moment she brought him into the bar. There was something about him that seemed off. Which was why I put the boys on alert, ready in case we needed to step in. And I was right.

To anyone else he probably seemed like a good guy when they first started dating. He seemed to treat her right and she’d been completely smitten with him. But there had been something in that bastard’s eyes that didn’t sit right with me.

My instincts had been right. As soon as Lauren started withdrawing into herself and that lively girl we all knew disappeared, I knew it was because of him. He was controlling, over-bearing and generally trying to rule her life. She couldn’t go out with her friends, told her what to eat, he dictated her wardrobe and shit like that.

It all came to a head the night that Lauren put in her letter of resignation. I knew for a fact that she loved her job and wouldn’t give it up for the world, if the choice had been hers. After some prodding, she broke down and admitted that he had been behind it all, wanting her to be at home at his beck and call.

I wasn’t going to stand by and let him ruin her like that. Professionally, I was just her boss. But we’d become friends in the time that she’d been working for me and I looked out for her. Matt hadn’t liked that, wanting to get her away from us. It had been hard for me not to stick my nose into her business and wait for her to come to me, but she eventually did.

We got the ball rolling straight away. Keeping Lauren at the bar with a couple of the boys watching over her, I wanted her somewhere we could keep an eye on her and where that asshole couldn’t get to her. He wouldn’t be able to step foot in the place without one of my boys beating his ass back out the door.

Maze had been pissed that he had to sit back at the bar and watch over Lauren while we had all the fun. I didn’t want him slipping through our fingers and causing her any problems. In my opinion, Maze had the hardest job, but I certainly had the most enjoyable.

What a fucked up mess of a situation. The delusional asshole had been sat in her apartment with his feet up, waiting for her to come home. The smug look on the bastards face had nearly sent me over the edge. He seriously had some kind of God complex thing going on, thinking he could do anything and get away with it and everything in me itched to knock the shit out of him.

However, we did the right thing and tried to talk it out with him first. The dick hadn’t wanted to listen to reason when we told him to pack his shit up and get the hell out of Lauren’s life. As much as I hated talking, I didn’t want to make this situation worse for her. Having him in her life was dragging her down and she had finally seen the light and reached out for help and we weren’t going to let her down.

How he ever thought he was going to get the better of the four of us, I’ll never know. When he started in telling us what was best for Lauren and how we didn’t know her at all, I totally lost my shit. That piece of scum was ruining her and I wouldn’t stand for it.

Honestly, he was seriously lucky that Austen dragged me off him when he did or he’d be drinking through a straw for the rest of his life. Once I started, I saw red and couldn’t stop.

With a little help from my brothers, it didn’t take him long to pack his stuff up and get the hell out of her place. If I’m being honest, I didn’t think it was going to be the last I saw of him. He wasn’t stupid, but he was cunning. If he could find a way to get back to Lauren, he would. I, for one, wouldn’t let that happen.

Maze had happily agreed to watch over her for a few days after he got over the fact he wasn’t going to be beating on anyone. I think he’s got the hots for her, but I knew he wouldn’t be stupid enough to act on it yet. She had been through enough lately without having to deal with him. Maze was a good guy and I could see them getting it on in the future, but not now. I trusted him.

I didn’t think her dipshit ex would be stupid enough to come crawling back so soon, and after the beating he had taken, I didn’t think he’d be able to walk in the near future, but better to be safe than sorry. We wanted to keep her safe. Maze was going to be sticking to her like glue for a while.

It was going to take her a while to get over it. He’d really done a number on her, but Lauren was a great girl and we’d do all we could to get her back to the woman we knew and loved.

Walking through to my office in the back, the crowds parted. No one got in my way, but more than one girl tried to rub herself up against me. I wasn’t in the mood tonight. There were plenty of guys in here that would pick up my slack. They didn’t appeal to me anymore.

The bar was always packed to the rafters on the weekends. In all fairness, we didn’t need Lauren in tonight. Jimmy had the bar covered and the others fell over each other to get the weekend shifts. The drinks started flowing and the tips came rolling in. They could easily double or triple what they earned behind the bar in tips in a weekend alone. Knowing that her asshole ex had wiped out her bank account, I hoped that tonight would go a long way to boosting Lauren’s cash situation.

Wall to wall bodies around the dance floor and the lines at the bar were at least four deep. I had a couple of things to take care of in the office and needed a little peace and quiet. The music was thumping and the atmosphere was hyper. I couldn’t think out there.

‘Sinners’ was a popular place to be seen and girls fought over themselves to get close to me and my boys. It was laughable really. And the reaction of the people that came into the bar were always predictable. Girls threw themselves at us like we were goddamn rock stars, wanting to jump our bones if we just so happened to glance in their direction. And the guys? They were intimidated by us. The boys and I worked out when we had the time and had some pretty impressive muscle mass between us. Although, there were some tools out there that thought they could take us on. It was always fun to knock them down a peg or two.

I’d always kept myself in shape. I didn’t go to the gym or any of that bullshit, but I ran and lifted weights whenever I had the time. It seemed to happen less and less lately, but keeping busy was always a good thing.

Austen and Kellin needed to keep fit and be at the top of their game for their line of work. They owned a successful security business that specialised not only in the technical side of things, but also personal protection. It was physical stuff and it wouldn’t do to be breathless and wheezing when they were supposed to be protecting someone. Their business would pack up and close if they didn’t keep their shit together.

And Jared was built like a brick shit house. He was an MMA fighter and had been working the underground circuit for years. Recently, he’d gone legit and was making a real name for himself in the business. The boy was doing us all proud and helping him train kept us all in shape.

He was following in my father’s footsteps. Dad had been a renowned fighter in his youth, hence why we all learned how to look after ourselves from a young age. The Saints’ weren’t a family to be messed with and we had a fierce reputation to uphold.

The door to my office opened up and the sudden noise from the bar rattled around my head. It was Lauren.

“Is everything okay?”

“I just wanted to say thank you again.”

I nodded. “He’s gone now. You’ll be fine.” She knew I wouldn’t say what happened this afternoon, but she had a pretty good idea of what went down from the bloody, bruised knuckles.

“I appreciate it.” She slid me another shot of Jack.

“You’ll be okay.”

“I will.” She looked determined to get back what she’d lost.

“Maze will be staying with you tonight.”

“He doesn’t have to.” She shook her head. “I’d rather be on my own and anyway, my friend is coming over to stay tomorrow.”

“Maze is staying tonight. And he’ll be there tomorrow. That’s final.”

She rolled her eyes at me but the small smile showed she appreciated what we were doing for her.

Getting back to business, I wanted to get a couple of calls out of the way before heading home. Jimmy had things covered here and I didn’t feel like a late night. I had someone waiting for me at home that meant more to me than any skank I could pull in this bar.

Chapter Two

Dominic

Walking into the bar, I was pleased to see it was already busy. I didn’t often call in on a Saturday night, but I wanted to check in on Lauren. She had a hard week of it. Maze had text me last night and again this morning to let me know she was okay and that there’d been no sign of her dick ex.

It hadn’t been easy to tell her what we had found out about him, but knowing it all helped her break away. With a bit of digging and speaking to the ladies that came into the bar, we had found out that the narcissistic douche had been dipping his dick all over town while he’d been gradually crushing Lauren’s self-esteem. It wasn’t a pretty picture. A simple back-ground check on Matt hadn’t brought up anything. Obviously he was into taking a woman and breaking her before fleecing her money and riding off into the sunset to find his next victim.

It made my blood boil. Obviously, he thought that he was clever enough to keep on getting away with it, just like he had done in the past. It all probably added to his game, trying to get one over on us, thinking that me and my boys were nothing but muscle bound air heads. How wrong was he? He had definitely picked on the wrong girl this time. We had Lauren’s back and wouldn’t let him get away with it.

I knew she was going to get fed up of having a shadow soon enough, but I hoped that Maze was keeping it cool. We needed to make sure she was safe. He knew better than anyone how to keep a low profile and hoped that he wasn’t going to let his feelings for her affect his work.

We’d known Maze since way back in school. We were the same age, thirty six, and we’d been friends ever since I saw him getting the shit beaten out of him in the playground. Always a champion of the underdog, I’d gone wading in and kicked the ever loving crap out of those bullies and Maze had stuck to us like glue ever since. No one messed with the Saints.

Not that anyone would ever think of laying a finger on him now. At thirty six, Maze was now a force to be reckoned with, a wall of immovable muscle. After that day in the playground, we’d all helped him work out and taught him how to fight and defend himself. He had made it his mission in life to make sure he was never put in that position again.

No one messed with the brothers. You pick on one, you have to face all of us and all holy Hell rained down. And Maze was as good as family. After that day, no one touched him again and a lifelong friendship had been formed. He was a good guy that I could always depend on and was as close as a brother.

Anyway, Lauren seemed happy enough as I walked into the bar. A fake smile was plastered on her face, not that any of the punters knew that. They saw what she wanted them to see, a bombshell behind the bar. I saw the strain as she tried to get her life back to something she considered normal. It was going to be a struggle for her, but she would get there in the end.

Moving over to our usual table, even though it was still early, it was the only empty one in the place. Everyone knew not to sit there. It was reserved for me and my brothers only.

Austen walked over, grinning like a kid in an ice-cream shop. “It’s busy in here tonight!” He nodded his head towards Lauren. “How’s she doing?”

“Maze says she’s doing fine.” I shrugged, “She looks okay, but Lauren is a master of hiding what she’s feeling.”

“I can’t believe we waited this long to kick his ass.”

I shrugged. What could I say? We couldn’t make a move until Lauren came to us. Admittedly, if we had known he was taking her cash as well, we would have stepped in, but we didn’t know. Hell, she didn’t even know. We had to wait for her to open her eyes to the situation

It wasn’t like we didn’t have the resources to look into the situation. Two of my brothers ran a small but profitable security company that ranged from individual protection to security detail at music venues. They preferred to deal with their assignments themselves if possible, but had a hell of a lot of guys on their books to call on if the job required more men. This was why the situation grated on us even more – this was the kind of thing they dealt with day in, day out. I wasn’t involved in the day to day running of things but was happy to help out if and when they needed it. And I could call on them if I needed it. Brothers stick together.

It was a small operation but they had a solid reputation. The boys’ had done good. Kellin and Austen had built it from the ground up, working small and building it bigger. They were proud of their ever growing empire and so they should be. They worked their balls off to make it what it was.

“Hey, Austen.”

I glanced up to see a cute blonde sidling up to him. It was clear the hair colour came from a bottle. It was as fake as her tits.

“Melissa.” He grinned as he stood up and pulled her close.

Turning away, I rolled my eyes. Melissa was one of the girls that came into the bar every single weekend without fail, hoping to bag one of the Saint brothers, or at least one of the guys that worked for Austen and Kellin. She was proud of the fact that she had made her way through most of the men in the bar, but I sure as hell wasn’t one of her conquests. I preferred my girls with a little more class. Hell, with the amount of men she’d been with, I would be surprised if Austen’s dick didn’t rot off. The girl was sure to be infected. I was just grateful that my brother always remembered to wrap it.

“I’ll be back in five minutes.” Austen winked at me as he slapped Melissa on the ass.

Five minutes? Who was he kidding? He was already hiking her dress up around her waist as they walked away through the crowd, giving everyone in the bar a clear view. She wasn’t wearing any underwear and the guys whooped it up, getting an eyeful of her used goods as she wiggled her ass and put on a show.

She wasn’t the only one who came into the bar with only one thing on her mind. There was a whole bunch of regulars who came in to blow or get blown or fuck out the back. It was like they wore their looseness like a badge of honour. Who was I to complain? As long as they were in there and spending their money, I couldn’t care less. Just because getting it on like that wasn’t my style anymore, I wasn’t about to stop the rest of them from having their fun.

The girls and guys were all as bad as each other. They all had one track minds. I’d had my fair share of pussy over the years, but mindless fucks without even knowing their names was a thing of the past for me. On the other hand, I wasn’t looking for anything serious, either. This was the time in my life when I had to concentrate on the business and building a future.

As long as they spent their money and the law didn’t get involved, they could do what the fuck they wanted for all I cared. This place had turned into a meat market, their intentions very clear on walking in. The beers flowed and the clothes came off.

Personally, I liked a girl with a little more mystery about them, rather than having every inch of flesh on display for the world to see and getting naked in front of a crowd. You could say I was jaded. I’d had the whore and the shit had turned nasty.

Honestly, though, I had to admire the girls that came in here and did their thing. They had an abundance of confidence oozing from every orifice.

The crowd parted as my brother walked into the bar. At thirty-six, I was the oldest. Kellin was thirty-four, Austen thirty-two and Jared was the baby at age twenty-nine. Out of all of us, it was Austen that seemed to be the most immature, acting like a pussy-deprived twat as often as he could.

“Need another drink?” Kellin asked as he eyed me rubbing my bruised knuckles.

I nodded. I wasn’t planning on sticking around tonight, but I needed to make sure Lauren was okay before I left. She seemed to be putting a brave face on things. Maze was sticking to her like glue, as instructed. Plus, I couldn’t just hit and run. It was the weekend and it was expected that I showed my face at some point.

Kellin rose and signalled to Jimmy. Owning this place certainly had its perks. There was no waiting around like the rest of the guys that rolled in here. The bar was heaving. We would die of thirst if we had to wait with the rest of them

I had bought this place simply because I had the cash to do it. We used to come in here most nights and it made sense to make money out of the old place rather than pissing it up the wall. Luckily, the old guy who’d had it before me had been looking for a buyer for some time and gave me a good price.

The bar was a rundown shithole that no one cared about. That all changed when I took over. Me and the boys did a major overhaul, changing everything about it and making it into the goldmine it was today. ‘Sinners’ had been born and it was a booming business.

My dad had provided well for us when we were growing up, instilling into us the value of making bank and saving. If it hadn’t been for him, I would have probably drank and partied any cash I made. At least with owning the bar, I was able to make money and party at the same time when the need arose.

“Thanks, Jimmy.” I nodded to him as he put the shot down on the table in front of me, and a bottle of beer for Kellin. He was staying off the hard stuff as he had another hard day at work planned for tomorrow. Security wasn’t a five day a week kind of job.

“Got any plans?”

Kellin shook his head. “Kacey is pissed that I’ve got to work this weekend.”

“So, why aren’t you at home with her now?”

“She’s giving me the cold shoulder.” Kellin rolled his eyes.

He and Kacey had been together for nearly two years and they looked like they were in it for the long haul. They made a good couple. She didn’t take any of his bullshit and didn’t seem intimidated by walking into a family made up predominantly of men.

The skanks in the bar had mourned their losses and moved their attention to Austen when they learned Kellin was off the market. Austen was the only single one left, if you didn’t include me. Kellin had Kacey, Jared had Maren and I wasn’t interested in the girls that came into the bar. I had too much going on in my life to waste my time.

“At least working weekends doesn’t happen too often.” Their security business was going really well, well enough that they could pick and choose their assignments. It wasn’t often that Kellin or Austen had to work stupid hours and employed enough other guys to cover for them. But sometimes, these things had to be done. Kellin was working on a sensitive case and it needed his attention.

“She’s threatened to plan a girly weekend.” Kellin shuddered, remembering the last time Kacey had turned their apartment into a girls’ only den, with pedicures, leg waxing and make-overs galore. Just walking in the door had you choking on the amount of perfume that hung heavy in the air. I had happily taken the piss out of him for weeks for smelling like a girl.

“What about you?”

“I just came in to check up on Lauren. I’m heading out soon.”

“Alone?” Kellin smirked.

“Fuck off.”

Chester, one of the guys that worked with Kellin, sat down at the table, grinning from ear to ear. “How can you go home alone with all this on offer?”

I didn’t bother to reply, simply shaking my head at him. He wouldn’t understand anyway. He was relatively new to the group, having only worked for my brothers for about twelve months. I wasn’t in the position to be taking random women home and a quick fuck in my office wasn’t on the cards for me tonight. Throwing the question back at him, I asked, “So, who do you have your eye on?”

Chester winked at me and pointed over to a brunette that was whirling around one of the stripper poles in what she clearly thought was a provocative manner, but in my opinion, failing miserably. She was giving him some serious fuck-eye action and the moment he pointed at her, her breath visibly hitched. It was game on for Chester. “Have at it, man.”

Acting all cool, Chester took a swig from him bottle of beer before standing up. “See you later, boys.”

Watching as he walked over to her, he didn’t say a single word. He didn’t have to. Taking her hand, he led her towards the rear exit of the bar. It didn’t take much imagination to wonder what they’d be getting up to in a matter of minutes.

Pushing the shot away from me, I wasn’t in the mood for it. Standing up, I shrugged on my jacket.

“Where are you going?” Kellin asked. “It’s still early.”

“I only wanted to check on Lauren. I’ve got somewhere to be.” The air was stifling and I wanted to get home. Lauren seemed happier since her friend arrived to keep her company and I knew Maze would still be keeping an eye on her. My work here was done.

Kellin started to say something but lost his train of thought when Kacey came walking into the bar, making a beeline for him. She didn’t look too pissed off to me so maybe my brother would get lucky tonight after all.

Walking away from the table, the crowd parted so I didn’t have to shove my way through. It was a sign of respect that I appreciated. Kissing Kacey on the cheek as I passed her and raising a hand to Lauren, I made my way outside.

Stepping outside, I breathed in deeply. The cool air refreshed me. The smell of beer, sex and desperation hung heavy in the air in the bar and it was cloying. As much as I loved the place, it was good to be out of there.

Fallon

I was shattered. The last thing I wanted to be doing was going out tonight, but how could I say no?