Brothers Ink Tattoo (Complete Box Set #1-4)

by Nicole James

  After a few moments of her tender caresses, he pressed soft kisses along her collarbone. His arms tightened, and he rolled until he was on his back and she was tight to his side, his arms wrapped around her.

  She skated her fingers over his chest, tracing the colorful lines of his tattoos until his hand came up and closed over hers, stilling her movements and bringing her knuckles to his mouth for a kiss.

  “That was so good,” she whispered.

  “That was better than good, angel. Best I’ve ever had.”

  “Me, too.”

  She smiled against his skin, and when he tipped his head, she knew he’d felt it. She tilted hers up to see that fact confirmed by the happy grin on his face.

  “Don’t go getting all smug on me,” she teased.

  His hand flattened on his chest. “Me? Smug? Not a chance. I’m just over here bein’ all grateful and shit.”

  “Grateful, huh? Not exactly the emotion I was going for.”

  “How about devotion, adoration, worship?”

  She slapped his taut stomach lightly. “Quit teasing.”

  He jumped as her palm connected and chuckled, then rolled her to her back again. “You want teasing, I’m all too happy to oblige, lady, if you think you can take more.”

  “No, no. No more. I’m worn out.” She giggled.

  He smiled down at her, his fingers lightly rubbing her forehead until her eyes slid closed. “You look happy.”

  She indulged in the feeling of his fingertips trailing over her skin a moment longer. “I am.”

  “Good. I plan to keep you that way.”

  She opened her eyes and met his gaze. “Do you, now?”

  “If you let me.”

  She searched his face. It would be so easy to let him.

  When she didn’t reply, he prodded, “We gonna do this?”

  Her teeth nibbled on her bottom lip, and his eyes dropped to the motion. “I don’t know, Liam.”

  Her response had his eyes flicking up to hers. “What don’t you know?”

  Needing an excuse, she glanced away and lied. “I’ve been hurt before.”

  “I’m not looking to hurt you, Velvet. Far from it. I just think we have something here, and we owe it to ourselves to see where it goes.”

  Her eyes shifted to his hypnotic gaze, and she got lost in the depths of the warm brown orbs. God, he could talk her into anything if she let him, and in this moment, she wanted to let him.

  When she stayed quiet, he finally asked, “You don’t feel the same?”

  She couldn’t bear the look of doubt that flashed across his face. “I do.”

  He brushed the back of his fingers down her cheek. “I’m not gonna let you run again.”

  She couldn’t help but wonder if he’d come to regret those words. “I don’t want to run.” And in that she was completely honest. Running from him was the last thing she wanted to do.

  He grinned, and she loved to see happiness on his face and to know she’d put it there. “Good, because you’re spending the night.”

  “You going all alpha again, bossing me around?” She pretended to object, but deep in her heart she loved him taking control.

  “Gonna try, but somehow I’ve got the feelin’ you’re the one who’s gonna end up with all the power in this relationship.”

  She traced her finger along the groove made by his grin and returned his smile, truly happy for the first time in a long time.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Velvet strolled hand-in-hand with Liam out of the bakery that occupied the storefront under his apartment, stepping out into the bright morning sun and sipping a to-go cup of hot coffee. She met his eyes over the rim, thoughts of last night dancing in her head. He winked at her as if he’d read her mind. It felt good. It felt warm and wonderful, and it filled her with joy—the kind she hadn’t ever known. He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed the tips of her fingers then tucked her up against his side as they moved down the street.

  “Know what I was thinking?” his deep voice rumbled softly in her ear as he dipped low, his beard tickling her cheek.

  She tilted her face up to his, not hiding the joy that she was sure sparkled in her eyes. “What’s that?”

  “That I could get used to this.”

  “Used to what?”

  “Sharing coffee and walking you to work every morning.”

  She let out a soft giggle. “Oh, could you, now?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Sure could.”

  “Hmm. I could get used to it, too. And those fried doughnut things we just had were amazing.”

  “Yep. Can’t forget Mrs. Heinzelmann’s Spritzkuchen. Makes the best in town.”

  “I’ve never had them before.”

  “Girl, you’ve been missing out.”

  Her eyes moved over his happy face. It wasn’t the doughnuts she was thinking of when she answered, “I do believe I have.”

  “I mean to change all that, Velvet, if you let me.” Something in the way he said those words and the suddenly serious expression on his face had her believing him. This man could change so many things for her if she would just let herself be open enough to trust in what they had.

  When she didn’t answer right away, he turned to face her, backing her to the wall. His solemn eyes pinned hers. “You gonna let me?”

  Staring up at him, she could do nothing but acquiesce. No words of denial would come from her mouth. “Yes, Liam. I’ll let you.”

  “Good. Glad we got that settled.” A broad grin spread across his face, and it absolutely lit up his whole expression. He dipped his head and touched his lips softly to hers, then stepped back and tugged on their linked hands. “Come on, pretty girl.”

  By the time Velvet had finished the last of her coffee, they had arrived at House of Ink. They paused outside. Liam’s expression darkened as he looked up at the signage and briefly at the plate glass window.

  She tried to release his hand but he tugged her a step closer, refusing to let her go just yet. He captured her eyes, bringing his face inches from hers.

  “You’re off tomorrow, right? The shop’s not open on Sunday, is it?”

  “No, it’s not open.”

  “So, you’re off then?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good. I’m taking you somewhere.”

  She couldn’t hide the happiness from her face. “Oh, really. Where?”

  “It’s a surprise.”

  “What time are you picking me up?”

  “Well, since you’ll be wakin’ up in my bed, I guess we won’t have to worry about that.”

  “Well, aren’t you the presumptuous one?”

  “Makin’ up for all that wasted lost time, which, by the way, was totally your fault.”

  “Haven’t I made up for it by moving to your town?”

  He gave her palm a kiss. “It’s a good start. I’ll come up with some other things you can do to make it up to me.”

  She grinned and looked behind her. “I really should go inside.”

  He glanced at the hours on the door. “See you at nine.”

  “Ten,” she corrected. Then laughed at the pout on his face. “I have to go home and get a change of clothes at least. Anything I need to bring for this adventure tomorrow?”

  “A jacket and sunglasses.”

  “Hmm, a small hint. So we’ll be outside, I take it?”

  “The lady is quick.”

  “Don’t you forget it.”

  “No chance of that.” He caught her face in his hands and tugged her flush against him, dipping his head for a kiss. It was longer than the last one but shorter than either of them would have liked. He broke off and kissed the tip of her nose. “See you tonight, Velvet.”

  “Goodbye, Liam.”

  She turned and let herself into the store then relocked it. Liam waited until she was safely inside before he turned and walked away with a final wave.

  She returned his wave with a smile, then walked to the rear of the shop and set her purse down
at the small cubicle Vano had set up for her. She was touching up her lipstick when she heard Vano come in the back door. She turned.

  “Hey.”

  He glanced over at her. “Good, you’re here. Come with me. I’ve got a deposit I want you to take to the bank. First Federal two blocks down on Third Avenue. Know where that is?”

  She nodded and followed him into his office. He knelt by the safe and twirled the tumbler. A moment later he had it open, and her eyes widened when they fell on the stacks of cash inside.

  He grabbed some, counted out an amount, shoved it in a zippered deposit bag, and locked the safe.

  “Why do you have so much money in the safe, Vano?”

  His stern eyes pinned her. “I’ve just let it build up, is all. Haven’t taken a deposit in a while. I think it’s time you take over that job. I hate doing it. It’s a pain in the ass.”

  She supposed his explanation made sense. Still, it seemed like an awful lot of money.

  When he rose to his feet, he bent over the desk and filled out the deposit form. “It’s $9875.00 Just below the daily limit of ten thousand.”

  “Why does that matter?”

  “Anything over that has to be reported.”

  “Reported? To who?”

  “The Feds. Homeland security shit. We can thank terrorism for that bullshit.”

  “Oh.”

  “I’ve written it out. You just take it to the counter and get a receipt. They ask any questions, just shrug and play the dumb employee. Got it?”

  “What would they ask?”

  “Hell if I know. Sometimes bankers are noisy. Get all in your business. Fucking bullshit is what it is. Reason I don’t want to go in there.”

  She glanced from him to the money. “Vano, I—”

  “Look, Sissy—”

  “Don’t call me that.”

  “Okay, Velvet. You think you got this?”

  “They’re not going to want me to sign anything or read anything?”

  “Just make sure the receipt matches the deposit amount. Can you do that?”

  “I’m not stupid, Vano. I can read numbers, just not… words very well.”

  “I know you’re not stupid, Vee.”

  “Sometimes I think you like that I can’t read. Just like Pop. Gives you some control or something.”

  “That’s not true. I never wanted to keep you out of school. That was all Pop.”

  “And sometimes you’re just like him.” She snatched the slip and deposit bag out of his hand.

  “Velvet, it’s just the way things have always been, you know that.”

  She didn’t want to hear any more of his excuses, so she stormed off, snatching her purse up as she passed.

  ***

  Vano stood in the doorway of his office and watched her go. She was wrong; he’d hated the old ways as much as she had growing up, but their old man had ruled the family with an iron fist until the day he died. And there was little he could do to go against his pop. He knew the life had been much better for him than it had been for Velvet back then because the ways of the gypsies gave little power to women. They kept the home and raised the children, and the men in the family made all the decisions. That was just the way it had always been.

  Even when the old man died, things changed little. Ma ran things until Vano was of age to take over. He’d tried to take care of Velvet, but he’d gotten arrested and put in prison for several years, and rather than live another minute under Ma’s control, Velvet had run off.

  Well, he’d tracked her down and brought her back, like he’d sworn to Ma he’d do, and he’d made sure to eliminate all her options in the process.

  She had to come back to the fold; he’d given her little choice and that wasn’t by accident. And now he was determined she wouldn’t have the means to run ever again.

  The rear door opened, and Skin and Weasel strolled in. Not their real names—the ones they’d gone by in prison where he’d met them.

  “Told you to call first. You can’t just stroll in anymore. Not with my sister working here. She don’t know shit about you two, and I want to keep it that way.”

  “Why’d you bring her here in the first place? She’s just attracting attention and that’s the last thing we need.”

  “I needed some way to show why our profits just went up drastically, dumbass. It’s easy to explain the big draw is her.”

  Skin grabbed a fistful of his shirt and pinned him to the wall. “Call me dumbass again, I’ll remind you of what you were in Statesville, you little shit.”

  “Okay, chill out.”

  Skin released him with a shove. “Fucking punk.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Liam turned his truck into the parking lot of the animal shelter. As usual, there were barely any cars. He slammed the gearshift in park and climbed out. The bell over the door jingled as he walked inside, and the sound of barking dogs carried from the back. He strolled to the counter.

  Pam Oswald greeted him with a smile. “Boy, am I glad to see you.”

  Pam was a cheerful, but overworked woman with a good heart. She was in her sixties, and Liam wondered how much longer she’d be able to keep this place going. She’d devoted her retirement and a good amount of her savings into opening this no-kill shelter, and it was always at capacity. Liam had found the place when he’d come across a stray and wanted to see if it was micro-chipped.

  He’d met Pam, and she’d corralled him into helping the rest of that afternoon and coming back the following Sunday. Ever since, he’d been a regular, donating his time whenever he could.

  “I had a couple hours before the shop opens. Thought I’d see if you needed some help.”

  “Sure do. We’re short handed today. You want to let the big breeds out in the exercise yard for me?”

  “Sure thing, darlin’. You know the big dogs are my favorite.”

  She winked at him. “A special one came in last night. Just made for all that land out at your brother’s place.”

  He grinned. “You know I moved out. I’m in town now.”

  “Yeah, but Max’s son, Ben, would sure love this one,” she brazenly suggested, which was totally her way.

  “That so, huh?”

  She lifted her chin toward the back. “See for yourself. White pit bull mix with the sweetest face you ever saw.”

  Liam chuckled at her salesmanship and went through the swinging door to the back. He walked down the row, greeting all the other dogs until he came to the one Pam had mentioned. It was huddled against the wall of the cage. Liam let the other dogs into the exercise yard, and then returned to the new guy on the block. Liam squatted down and called it over with a soft clicking sound.

  The dog shook, but its tail wagged a couple of times.

  Liam could tell it was young, not a puppy, but probably no more than six months old. As he squatted there, Pam joined him, and he glanced up. “No chip?”

  “Nope. Someone left him tied to the door handle. Found him when I opened up this morning.

  “Some people are real pieces of shit.”

  “I couldn’t agree more.” She dug in her pocket and held out a handful of treats. “These should get him to come to you.”

  Liam took the offering and opened the cage door. He tossed one toward the dog. It wasn’t long before his nose twitched as he sniffed the air and leaned closer to the treat. He crept toward it and gobbled it up. Liam tossed another one at half the distance and watched the dog wag its tail and hesitantly creep to it, all the time keeping watchful eyes on Liam.

  This time Liam held out his palm with the remaining treats. “You’re gonna have to come say hello if you want more, Buddy.”

  The dog sniffed the air and eyed the treats in Liam’s palm, stretching his neck out. He crept closer and soon had his snout in Liam’s hand. Liam ran a gentle palm down his flank. “Good boy.”

  Soon the dog was rubbing against Liam and licking his face.

  Liam looked up at Pam who was shaking her head and smiling.
“You’ve got the touch, son. Like no one I’ve ever seen.”

  “I don’t know about that, but he does seem sweet.”

  She passed him a lead and gestured down the aisle. “Take him outside and work with him for a few minutes. See if he’d make a good dog for an eight-year-old boy.”

  Liam clipped the lead around the dog’s neck and stood, his knees cracking. “Come on, buddy.”

  The dog followed at his side, eager to be out of the cage. When they stepped into the sunshine and fresh air, his tail wagged as he sniffed the breeze.

  Liam worked with him for almost half an hour before he made his decision and brought him back into the reception area.

  Pam turned from what she was doing, her eyes falling to the dog at Liam’s side. “Well, I see you didn’t return him to his cage. Does that mean you’re taking him?”

  “I’ll drive him out to our place, talk to Max, let him decide if he wants Ben to meet the dog when he gets home from school. I can’t make any promises.”

  Pam nodded. “Good deal. I’ll keep my fingers crossed and hope this sweet boy finds a home.”

  “I better get going if I’m going to get out there and back before the shop opens.”

  “They want him, bring him back, and I’ll micro-chip him.”

  “Will do.”

  She bent down and rubbed the dog’s ears. “Good luck, boy. Be on your best behavior.”

  Liam led the dog outside and opened the door to his truck. The dog hopped up eagerly, sat on the seat, and stared out the windshield. Liam chuckled. “Guess you’re anxious to go, huh, Buddy?”

  Twenty minutes later, the pickup rolled slowly up the gravel drive to the place Liam had grown up. The old farmhouse was where Max, his wife Malee, their adoptive son Ben, and Mrs. Larsen their cook and Ben’s part-time caregiver lived. Off to the left was the big new place Jameson had built for his wife Ava and their newborn daughter.

  Until recently Liam had lived in the old place with Max and their youngest brother, Rory, who was rarely home anymore. When Max had married, Liam had felt it best he give them space. Especially now that Max’s little family was growing even more with the news that Malee was pregnant.