Between Friends

by Sandra Marie

  “Let’s do something stupid tonight,” he said, pushing the curtain aside that separated the front of the tattoo shop from the back.

  “And that’s different from every other night, how?” she quipped, a sparkle in her blue eyes. Maybe she wasn’t as off as he figured.

  “We’ll close up early,” he suggested, hoping that she’d go for it. Rae was fun, but she was a stickler when it came to work. Probably why he was still in business. Sure, he was the one who’d begged his model daddy for a loan, but it was Rae’s bookkeeping and work ethic that had him paying it back in just over a year. He’d be completely out on his can, his dinner compliments of the dumpster outside Dunkin’ Donuts if it weren’t for her.

  “I have a late client tonight, so no go.” She flipped the open sign on, the neon buzzing through the air as it awoke from a night off. “I’d say go do something stupid all by your lonesome, but you’ll end up in the hospital again.”

  “Hey, I have one punch left before I get a free x-ray.”

  Rae flumped down on the stool behind the counter and rested her chin in the palm of her hand. She flipped through her phone, and Tommy took a peek at the dating app she was on.

  “Still at it, huh?” he asked. It’d been a good two weeks since he’d seen her weeding out her online choices. “Any luck so far?”

  “You’d know if I’d had any luck,” she said with a knowing smirk. Tiny specks of glitter from her eye makeup had fallen onto her round cheeks. Tommy slid the phone from her hand and flicked through her choices.

  “Gavin Mills,” he read. “Says he owns his own business.”

  “Yeah, you dork,” she said, reaching for her phone, but he pulled it away. “Hole in the Wall—that bar we went to just a few weeks ago.”

  “Then we swipe yes to that,” he said, taking the liberty to do it for her. She lunged from the stool, rushing him until she had him pinned against the wall. She was strong, but short, so Tommy let out a breathy laugh and held her phone up as high as his arm could go.

  “You better not be pressing any buttons, Thomas Varner, or say goodbye to some precious family jewels.”

  Rae never issued a threat she wasn’t fully intending on following through with. He gave up the phone and covered the goods. Rae wrinkled her nose as she saw Gavin already in her pile of yeses.

  “Great…” She slumped back into her seat. “Now we have to find a new bar.”

  “Not a total loss.” Tommy grinned. “That place was getting crowded anyway.”

  “Says the seven-years sober guy who couldn’t care less if we go to a bar at all.”

  “Hey, I’m just doing my part for society. Nobody wants a drunk Tommy hanging around Seattle.”

  “Very true.”

  There was a beat, and he hoped Rae wasn’t suddenly reminded of the real drunk Tommy. There were lots of reasons he hadn’t touched a drink since he was twenty-two, and a lot of them had to do with her.

  “So why aren’t you interested?” he asked, swinging the subject around and hopping up onto the counter. He grabbed the poop emoji stress ball Rae’d gotten for him a couple years back and started squishing. The thing had been played with so much the eyes had nearly worn off.

  “He’s out of my league,” she answered with a lift of her shoulder. She put her phone face down on the counter and looked up at him. “You know he’s Ashton Mills’ twin, right?”

  “Eh, he ain’t that great looking.”

  She let out a ridiculous snort, and he grinned just off her reaction. The guy—or both guys—were practically Hemsworth brothers and had money to boot, but Tommy had a way of downplaying the societal norm for beauty, probably because he’d grown up around it. Good ol’ Dad and his photogenic face. His dad was in his fifties now and still graced the covers of magazines from time to time.

  Tommy squished the poop against the counter, letting the foam stick out between his fingers. “The guy would be damn lucky to go out with you, if you ask me.”

  “And how would you know?” She tilted an eyebrow. It disappeared into the flow of her bangs that covered her forehead.

  He spread his arms out. “Who would know better than the guy you spend your every waking minute with?”

  She rumbled her lips. “Don’t remind me.”

  “You love me, and you know it.”

  “Yeah, yeah.”

  They spent another twenty minutes shooting the shit and playing Go Fish before Tommy’s first client showed up. He took the guy into the back, and Rae watched the guy’s backside all the way up until it was in the chair, and then she got busy with another customer who walked in.

  “All right, Brian…” Tommy snapped on a pair of gloves. The guy had already done the consultation, and Tommy had worked on the art over the week. He sucked in a breath and grabbed his tablet. “What d’ya think?”

  Brian was too distracted by Rae apparently to hear a damn thing Tommy had just said. The dude’s eyes were locked on her every movement, his hand running over his thick beard. A wrinkle pulled at Tommy’s nose, and he cleared his throat.

  “Hello there?” he joked, waving a hand in front of Brian’s face. Brian blinked and narrowed his eyes at Tommy. “You okay with this?” Tommy reiterated.

  Brian took the tablet and zoomed in on the artwork, his face unreadable. “This’ll cover the whole thing?”

  Tommy nodded. “The shading on the mouth will cover that name right up.”

  “Then it’s cool.” He handed the tablet back, and Tommy tried not to be disappointed by the lack of enthusiasm. Men tended to be less vocal about liking their ink, but as an artist and a salesman, Tommy liked a little bit of a pat on the back before permanently marking the dudes.

  About a half hour into his tattoo, Rae came back with the walk-in—a girl who looked about twenty-one, high heels, and jeans that hugged a rockin’ backside—and took her spot next to him. Rae’s eyes focused on her tools, except for the flicker of interest in Brian. The corner of Tommy’s mouth twitched. He was all for Rae dating, but this guy kinda rubbed him the wrong way, and it wasn’t just ‘cause he didn’t praise all the work Tommy had put into his tattoo.

  Okay, maybe that was part of it. But more than that was the fact Brian was in the shop just last week with another girl on his arm who’d begged him to cover up the name on his leg in the first place.

  “Let’s do movie night,” Tommy blurted, trying to solidify their plans. “After your last client. You up for it?”

  “Like you can sit still through a movie.”

  “It’s been known to happen,” he defended, though it really was once in a blue moon. It was a damn miracle he was able to sit through long tattoos without bouncing around. Maybe that’s why he was so antsy outside of work—he needed to get off his ass.

  “Are you guys…?” Brian asked, jabbing a thumb over at Rae.

  “Co-workers?” Tommy teased condescendingly. “Aliens? Jewish? What we going for, Brian?”

  Rae snapped a glove at him, which he easily dodged.

  “Romantically involved,” Brian finished, his lips turned down, his eyes unamused. This guy was a lot of fun.

  “No,” Rae answered, and her tone hit him in the chest a little hard. “We’re just constant pains in each other’s rears.”

  Tommy nodded emphatically, and Rae let out her uncute laughter.

  Brian’s mouth tilted up slightly, and he shifted toward Rae. Luckily the tattoo gun wasn’t on him, or Tommy would’ve drawn a nice long line across the guy’s thigh.

  “I could do a movie night,” he said, and Tommy sensed the sudden seduction in his tone, and he didn’t like it one bit. If he wasn’t attached to a tattoo gun—and the guy wasn’t paying him a pretty penny—he’d have launched himself between them. Back off, buddy. That’s my friend and you’re not fun enough for her.

  “And it looks like I’m pretty good at sitting through things,” he continued.

  Oh, come on… Rae couldn’t be falling for this.

  But there she was, practically s
wooning on her rolly chair, her lips pulling upward in a teasing smile, her eyes still concentrating on the tattoo she was working on, but her brain obviously toying with the idea of ditching him for Mr. Ungrateful.

  “So, who was this Beverly?” Tommy asked, as unprofessional as it was. There was an unwritten rule not to ask clients about coverups, especially names, but would you look at that? He’d just thrown that right out there, hadn’t he?

  Brian furrowed his brow, glaring at Tommy before directing his answer to Rae. “Beverly was a girl I used to see. Big mistake.” He threw his hand out toward his thigh. “Obviously.”

  “I’ve had a few of those,” Rae said, and Tommy gritted his teeth. Yeah, she had, and if she was smart, she’d keep this guy off her list, too.

  “A girl with experience. I like that.”

  Ugh. Tommy considered giving the tattoo a last minute redesign. How would Brian feel about butterflies?

  There was a beat when all that was heard was the buzz of the tattoo guns.

  “What’s your name, beautiful?” Brian was back at it.

  Rae met his gaze, and Tommy was proud to say she hadn’t let the pet name paint her cheeks red. “Raelynn.”

  Tommy smiled to himself. Rae only introduced herself as her full name if she didn’t want to get too close.

  “Well, Raelynn… What do you say? Dinner and a movie tonight?”

  Her mouth split into a polite smile. “Wish I could, but my night’s already booked.”

  Relief piled in Tommy’s gut, and he bit back a sigh aching to creep out his lips. That’s right, buddy. I win.

  “How ‘bout tomorrow? Night after that? Really, any night is good for me.”

  She let out a snort, then shook her head, running the tattoo gun over her client’s flat stomach. What was happening? Tommy had never been boxed so easily out of a conversation. An itch tingled on the back of his neck, and he ached to scratch it until it died.

  “Thursday,” Rae said after a moment. “If you’re still interested by then.”

  “Oh, I will be.”

  Brian relaxed in his seat, and Tommy moved his gaze from the tattoo to Rae. She met his eyes, her sky blue irises sparkling under the lights. They shared a silent agreement to talk this one out, and Tommy knew he wasn’t gonna hold anything back. Rae deserved love, that was for damn sure, but with the right guy. And sorry, Brian, but you just ain’t it.

  It was stupid, really, to get approval before going out on a date, but Rae wanted to talk this one out with Tommy. He was her best friend, after all, and he’d looked like he was sucking on a Warhead the whole time Brian had been hitting on her.

  Ah… How nice was it to be hit on, though! Rae replayed the conversation in her head, making sure he was definitely talking to her and not her client. How embarrassing would that’ve been if he was. But no… the more she replayed it, the more she knew his advances were directed toward her.

  There was a spring to her step for the rest of the day, and after her last client paid and headed out, Tommy locked the door and gestured her to follow him into the back.

  “You’ll consider that guy but not Gavin Mills,” he said with no prelude. He popped the lid on the Lysol and sprayed down his station.

  “He was interested in me, right?” Rae countered, holding her hand out and wiggling her fingers for the spray. He slapped it into her palm, and she started on her own station. “What’s the harm in going on one date?”

  “Remember the last client you went out with?”

  “You remember the jail cell?” she quipped. Ten minutes into that date, Tommy had clocked the guy. In Tommy’s defense, the guy completely deserved it, but still. Rae didn’t exactly have bail money this time…or the emotional stability for another one of Tommy’s possessive streaks. There were times he acted more like a boyfriend, and her heart couldn’t take another hopeful upswing for the two of them to only have it dashed.

  “My point exactly.” He playfully grinned. “Tattooed guys are nuts.”

  A snort billowed from her nostrils, and she shook her head at his sleeve of tattoos. “Probably right on that one.”

  “So you really going out with this guy?”

  Rae’s smile turned upside down, and she focused on cleaning up. She could be honest with Tommy, but it sucked saying out loud. Her options were limited, and with everyone pairing off lately, she felt left behind. It was easy for him to say no; there was always another girl around the corner who was interested—herself included. He was fun, adventurous, hilarious, and not bad looking either. His genetic pool was an array of perfect smiles and toned muscles and thick, sink-your-fingers-into hair. And his tattoos only enhanced all those qualities.

  Rae was beautiful, but in her own way. She knew it wasn’t everyone’s cuppa, and it was hard to find those who did find her attractive. So when she did, she grabbed hold.

  She lifted a shoulder. “Why not?” she asked, knowing he’d tell her exactly why not. And she probably needed to hear it.

  “He was…” He made a face, wrinkling his nose and distorting his mouth.

  “He wasn’t ugly,” Rae defended. Honestly, she couldn’t tell under all the facial hair, but he had pretty eyes. Not Tommy pretty, but if she compared every guy to Tommy, she’d never find someone.

  “Maybe not here,” Tommy said, waving a hand around his face. “But in here.” He stuck a finger to his heart, and Rae pursed her lips together to keep from laughing at how cheesy that was.

  “Should I cancel, then?” she asked, unable to hide the disappointment in her tone. Her dating apps hadn’t come up with any winners, and with Valentine’s Day so close, the guys were eerily quiet on the dating front. Probably didn’t want to get sucked into an expensive dinner or something with a girl they barely knew. At least that’s what Rae hoped was happening.

  Tommy flipped a rag over his shoulder, the bandage from his earlier tattoo still stuck to his arm. He needed to lotion that sucker up.

  “I’m not the dating police,” he said with a small smirk.

  “Really?” Rae grabbed the ointment. “Past experience leads me to believe otherwise.”

  He let out a breath through his nose, and Rae closed the distance between them. She picked at the corner of his bandaging and carefully peeled it back.

  “What’ll you guys do, you think?” His brown eyes focused on her hands as she took care of the new artwork on his reddened skin.

  She shrugged. “Dinner. Movie. Sex.”

  “Funny.”

  She dipped a finger into the tub of ointment and started spreading it over his bicep. Tommy wasn’t muscular per se, but he had nice arms. Probably from all that tattooing and rock climbing.

  “You worried about me?” she teased.

  “Always.” His gaze lifted, and the half grin he’d been gifted with twitched upward. “But if you want to go out, I ain’t gonna stop you.”

  Maybe she wanted him to. It was equally awesome and sucky having him as a best friend. On her weaker nights, she entertained the idea of something more with him, but the longer they remained friends, the deader that idea became. He was so frustratingly friendly with her, but never enough to give her the idea he wanted more.

  Yet, there were moments, like this one, when she wished he’d tell her why he always wanted her around. Why he was obviously bothered by the men she dated. But he probably didn’t even know himself, and Rae would most likely be disappointed in the answers he came up with.

  “Great,” she said, putting on a smile. “Then I’m taking Thursday night off.”

  “Great,” he muttered. She finished up with his tattoo, and they closed shop. As Tommy switched the lights off and tested the doors, Rae texted the number Brain gave her to make their date more concrete. A wave of fantasies flickered through her brain as she typed out the flirtatious words, a grin wrapping her face. She knew it was too early to build a future off of one exchange, but she couldn’t help it. Everyone was paired off, and she wanted to imagine a time in the near future when she wasn�
�t the odd man out. And it would be nice to finally get over her unrequited feelings. Maybe sitting in a Passion Party purchasing couple toys wasn’t that far-fetched after all.

  Tommy swung his arm around her shoulder and led the way to her car while she tapped on her phone. “You still up for hanging out?”

  “Only if I’m allowed to wear pajamas.” She wasn’t up for any of his shenanigans tonight. “No rock walls or cab hopping or streaking through the park.”

  “Damn.” He pulled a beanie out from his coat pocket and fit it snug over his wild blond hair. “Then I call a massage train movie night.”

  “You get the caboose.”

  “And choice of movie.”

  “Deal.” Rae could use a shoulder rub, and Tommy was pretty darn good at them.

  Tommy pinched the bag of popcorn and pulled a little too hard, and popcorn and steam flew out. “Whoops.” He chuckled under his breath, sweeping the kernels from the counter into the bowl. He’d better use the scissors on the chocolate chips unless he wanted another mess to clean up.

  After sprinkling the chocolate chips generously over the popcorn, he grabbed a couple of Cokes and tucked the bowl against his chest.

  “I get the remote, remember,” he said to Rae on her living room floor, her thumb flicking through Netflix. She was sprawled out in her comfort wear, hot pink fuzzy bottoms paired with a similarly colored off-the-shoulder holey tee. He crawled over her, popcorn spilling from the side of the bowl, and flopped into the couch cushion behind her head. She swapped him the remote for food and drink and adjusted the blanket she’d stolen from his car three months ago.

  Tommy switched over from her profile to his. They shared several accounts, and there were times Tommy joked about just moving in together and splitting rent, too, but Rae was a hard pass on that. Something about guys not being cool about her having a male roommate.. Then she made him watch a marathon of sitcom episodes where that situation did not work out. Point Rae.

  He put on American Vandal, and Rae giggle-giggle-snorted around her mouthful of popcorn. They’d watched all the episodes, but they re-watched it more times than Tommy would like to admit.