by J. L. Perry
Once I’m seated in the driver’s side, Ross leans in my window. “I’m only a phone call away if you need me,” he says, soft enough for only me to hear. I know there’s an underlying meaning to his words. He has no reason to worry. I intend to keep a very close eye on Indiana while she’s staying with me. I’d never let anything happen to her. I think Ross knows that.
••••
For most of the drive we travel in a comfortable silence. Except for when Indi is singing along to the radio. It’s sweet. I love how relaxed she is around me. There’s nothing pretentious about her at all. What you see is what you get.
“I can’t wait to see your place,” she says placing her hand on top of mine. “Meg and I went to Newcastle a few years ago for a girl’s weekend, when I was at Uni.” I look over at her and smile. I would’ve been living up here then. If only I’d known. It would’ve blown my mind if I had ran into them.
“How is Meg? Do you still see her?” When we were kids those two were always together.
“She lives overseas with her husband, Drew. We still talk on the phone when we can, but it’s not the same.” You can clearly hear the sadness in her voice as she talks. “They move around a lot, and with the time differences between countries, it’s hard. I miss her so much.” I bet she does. Meg married? For some reason I can’t picture that.
“Does she know about the tumour?”
“No. She has her own worries. She doesn’t need to be burdened down with mine,” she replies giving me a half-hearted smile.
“Regardless, Indi. She’s your friend, she’d want to know.” She shrugs at my reply.
“If the opportunity arises next time we talk, I’ll tell her.” I can see this subject is getting her down, so I quickly change it to something else.
“I can’t wait for you to see my shop. There’s something special about it that I haven’t told you,” I say squeezing her hand.
“Really?” Her face lights up when she looks at me. “What?”
“You’ll see when we get there.”
••••
“Indi Ink,” she whispers when I pull up outside. “Oh my God. You named your shop after me,” she squeals, her head snapping in my direction.
“I did,” I reply smiling when I see the look on her face.
“When?” she asks excitedly as we exit the car.
“When I opened it.”
“But that was four years ago.” Her beautiful eyes widen when she walks towards the shop, her head tilted back so she can see the sign.
“I know. It’s silly I guess, but I wanted you to be a part of it somehow.”
“It’s not silly,” she whispers before launching herself into my arms. “It’s amazing. I’m so touched that you would do that.” Her lips are on mine before I get a chance to reply. “I love it. I love you,” she says against my mouth. My hands slide around her waist, drawing her closer. I love that she loves me, because I love her so fucking much.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Indiana
“Thank you for making me part of your shop,” I say when I pull back from the kiss. I got all choked up when I first saw it. I thought maybe he’d changed the name recently, but the fact he named it after me, even when I wasn’t in his life anymore, means so much more. It confirms everything I hoped all those years ago—that he hadn’t forgotten about me after he left, and that I did mean something to him.
“You still held my heart the whole time I was gone,” he admits, making me melt. The sincerity in his words brings a lump to my throat as my hold on him tightens. I can’t believe we wasted five long years of our lives apart. In saying that though, I know it will only make us more appreciative of what we have now.
“Can we go in and take a look around?” I ask with excitement. I want to see what it looks like inside. I want to see him in all his glory. I’m so proud of everything he’s achieved. Even though my heart was broken after he left, the hardest part for me was not knowing what had become of him. He was all alone. A teenager with a huge chip on his shoulder and a mountain of anger inside him. That’s what worried me the most.
My main concern was that he’d get himself into trouble. Or worse, turn to alcohol or drugs to cope. I’m so grateful that wasn’t the case. Even back then, as much as he tried to hide it, I knew his heart was good. He was just tainted by a stupid word.
“Really? You want to go inside now?” The disappointment in his voice doesn’t go unnoticed. When he pulls me back against him and I feel his hard on pressing into my back, I know why. “I was hoping to take you upstairs first.” The hopeful look on his face almost has me agreeing. But I want to get this out of the way so we can lock ourselves away for the rest of the night. I’ve been busting to see it.
“Just a quick one. Then you can take me upstairs and ravish me.”
“Deal,” he says grabbing hold of my hand and dragging me towards the shop. He unlocks the door and flicks on the main switch lighting the place up. My eyes dart everywhere as he disables the alarm system. I love it already. It’s nothing like I imagined.
“Okay. You’ve seen it, let’s go.” He reaches for my hand to drag me back out the door, but I pull away from him. Nice try buddy.
“Let me look around first,” I say with a small laugh as I pull out of his grip and step further into the reception area. I hear him sigh behind me, but I ignore it. It’s huge. It doesn’t look so big from the street. The floors are tiled in a dark charcoal grey. There are two long, black leather sofas right in the middle of the room, sitting on a turquoise blue shag pile rug. A black coffee table sits in the middle of the sofas. There are four large black albums stacked on top.
Walking towards them, I open the first one to see it’s full of his drawings. I want to sit down and go through them all, but I know that’s going to piss him off, so I’ll leave that for later.
Off to the right is a large, black L shaped counter, with three pendant lights positioned strategically above it. This place has so much class. It’s nothing like what I imagined a tattoo parlour would look like. I’m fascinated by every detail. My fingers run over everything as I pass. The walls are painted in the same turquoise colour as the rug, and the large black and white framed drawings around the walls stand out against the green. I take it all in as I manoeuver through the room. There are recessed lights built into the ceiling above each drawing, illuminating them.
My eyes move to Carter, still standing just inside the doorway. His hands are buried in the pockets of his jeans as he stands back observing me. “I love seeing you in my space,” he says as he stalks towards me. I love that he brought me here.
“This place is beautiful,” I tell him. “I’m so proud of you.” My arms snake around his neck as I tilt my head back to make eye contact with him. “Really proud, Carter.”
“Thank you,” he replies bringing his mouth down on mine. “Can I take you upstairs now?” His comment makes me laugh.
“I haven’t finished my tour yet. Show me around the rest of the place.” He exhales in frustration.
“Fine, but it’s gonna be quick.” He reaches for my hand, pulling me through the room towards a long corridor. There is a stack of doors all the way down. At least ten each side, maybe more. “These are the rooms of my artists. Where all the magic takes place,” he explains.
“You have that many people working for you?” I ask surprised.
“Yes. I have twenty-three people on the books, not including me: twenty artists, plus Vicki, who does all the piercings. Justine works on the front desk and then there’s Jacquie. She does all the stocking and ordering of supplies.”
“Wow.” I don’t know what else to say. For some reason I thought it was just him and maybe one or two other people working here. I’m blown away. “Which room is yours?” He leads me down to the end of the corridor.
“The biggest one,” he chuckles. “I’m the boss, I’ve gotta have some perks.” Of course he’d have to have the biggest. That doesn’t surprise me in the least. He grabs h
is keys out of his pocket and unlocks the door.
“Why is the door locked?”
“All the doors have locks on them. My guys each have their own keys, and I have a master key that unlocks them all. The equipment we use is expensive. It just made sense to fit locks on the doors when I had the shop fitted out.”
“Makes sense,” I say in agreement. When he switches on the light he steps to the side so I can enter. Again it’s nothing like I imagined. It’s bright and sterile looking. I suppose it has to be given the nature of the business. The walls are painted white. Along the back wall sits a black leather flat bed. Over in the corner is a matching soft black leather reclining chair with an adjustable stool beside it. There’s a stainless steel bench off to one side, with two long lamps that have retractable extending arms attached. Another stainless steel cabinet sits off to the side of that. It has small drawers down both sides.
I walk towards the frames hanging along the left wall. They’re all certificates. “Did you win all these awards?”
“Yeah. Jax made me enter them when I worked for him. I don’t have time for that shit anymore.”
“That’s amazing,” I say looking over my shoulder at him. He has a shy boyish smile on his face that I find very endearing. My eyes are drawn to the large picture behind him. “Oh my God, Carter. That’s me.” It’s a huge framed sketch of my face. It takes up half of the wall. Far out.
“Yeah,” he replies, scratching his head and bowing his face like he’s embarrassed that I’ve seen it. I step around him to get a closer look. It’s beautiful. My mouth is curved up into a natural smile. He has drawn my eyes with such detail they actually look like they’re sparkling. Is this how he sees me? I stand there for the longest time just staring at it. I’m mesmerised.
Carter comes up behind me as I take it all in. His arms snake around my waist and his lips trail a path up my neck. “Let’s get out of here before I bend you over the bed and fuck you senseless. Having you in this room makes me want to do all kinds of crazy shit.” I tilt my head to the side and smile as he sucks my earlobe into his mouth. When he bites down softly, I moan.
“I’m game,” I breathe, turning in his arms.
“Don’t tempt me, because I’m already on edge.” The desire I see in his eyes sends tingles down my spine. Sliding my arms around the back of his neck, I pull his lips down to mine. That’s all the encouragement he needs. Before I know it, I’m backed up against the wall and my top is being pulled over my head.
His mouth, tongue, and hands are everywhere. Grabbing hold of the hem of his T-shirt, I slide it upwards as my fingers move over his delicious abs. He reaches behind himself, tugging at the neckline before ripping it over his head. My mouth goes straight to his nipple ring, as I swirl my tongue around it before sucking it into my mouth.
Tilting his head back he groans loudly. “I need to be inside you now,” he breathes. His hands move around my back as his fingers work at unclasping my bra. Sliding it down my arms, he lets it drop to the floor. My body melts into him as his hands run up my sides until he reaches my breasts, palming them.
My fingers work frivolously at his pants, undoing the button and fly. Once they’re undone, I pull them down over his hips taking his boxers with them. Wrapping my hand around his hard length, I stroke it. “I can’t wait another second,” he groans as he spins me around before lifting and laying me face down on the bed. His hands move around to my front and he makes quick work of undoing my jeans and reefing them and my underwear down my legs. “Get on your knees,” he commands. I do exactly as he says.
My arse is high in the air and I’m completely exposed to him, but I’m so turned on I don’t even care. I want, no, I need his hands, his mouth or his cock in me now. Like he just read my mind, his finger runs from my clit, sliding through my wetness before sinking deep inside me. My back arches as I push my body into his hand. “Oh God,” I moan.
“That’s not my name,” he says in a stern voice as he pulls his finger out before adding another and gliding them back in.
“Carter. Please fuck me,” I beg. When his fingers leave me and I hear the foil wrapper tear, I know I’m about to get exactly what I asked for. I moan loudly when I feel him rub his length around my entrance. His fingers slide up my back until he reaches my hair. Wrapping my ponytail around his wrist, he gently tugs my head back.
“I remember the first day I met you,” he whimpers, sliding all the way inside me. “My first thought that day was exactly this. I wanted to bend you over, grab hold of your hair and fuck you hard.” He pulls almost all the way out before slamming back into me. He repeats the process over and over until I’m screaming. What we’re doing is hot and feels so damn good.
“Don’t stop,” I moan. The rougher the better. It just turns me on more. Every time he slams back into me, the head of the bed hits the wall with a loud thud. “Harder,” I implore as my fingers clutch tightly onto each side, digging into the leather to hold me in place. He’s never been this rough with me before, but I love it. It’s so primal, so raw. It’s fucking at its best.
“Fuck, Indi,” he cries as his fingers dig into my hips, stilling me. He continues to pound into me in hard, short strokes. “I love you so much, Indiana.” That’s all I need to send me over the edge.
“Carter,” I moan as my head tilts towards the roof and my eyes roll back in my head. “I’m coming …”
“I know, baby. I love the way your pussy grips my cock when you come,” he groans out as he pumps into me a few more times before his body shudders then stills.
His lips find my neck when he collapses down on top of me. “That was amazing,” I pant.
“It was,” he replies as his lips curve into a smile against my skin. “I’m never gonna look at this bed the same way again.”
“I think we marked the wall,” I giggle.
“I don’t give a fuck about the wall. I didn’t hurt you did I?”
“Not at all,” I say turning my head to meet his lips. He smiles as his hand comes up to brush the hair off my face. The love I see in his eyes melts my heart. Nobody will ever make me feel the way he does. Nobody.
He plants another kiss on my lips before he pushes off me and stands. “Get dressed. I want to take you upstairs. You can soak in the bath while I fix us something to eat, then I’m taking you to bed.” The look of promise I see on his face sends my heart into a flutter. I’m so glad I came up here with him. I already know this week is going to be amazing.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Carter
Neither of us realised that poor LJ was still in the back of the car until we heard him barking when we exited the shop. Indi rushed straight to him while I retrieved the bags from the trunk. After carrying him over to the grassed area next to my building so he could relieve himself, we head upstairs.
I’ve always loved living here, but having her with me now makes coming home all the better. I’ve redone the whole upstairs area, the kitchen, bathroom, everything. At this stage it only has one bedroom, but the old man that owns the adjoining building is only months off retiring and I’m already in negotiations for buying him out.
When I do, I have plans of knocking down the wall between my apartment and the one above his shop and extending my living space, as well as adding two more bedrooms. I’ll probably rent out the shop below with plans of expanding my parlour when I have more cash flow.
“Wow, look at the view from up here,” Indi says when I usher her inside. When I moved in, I had the pissy little windows on the far wall replaced with floor to ceiling ones. The view of the ocean from up here is spectacular. I only wish I could’ve added a balcony out here, but council regulations forbid it. Fuckers.
You can see all the way to the horizon, and the sunset is really something. I can’t wait to share that with Indi while she’s here. “The view looks mighty fine from in here, too,” I tell her as I wrap my arms around her from behind, resting my chin on her shoulder. I can see her smile reflecting in the glass in fron
t of us. Fuck I’m so stoked to have her here.
Turning, she snakes her arms around my neck. “Thank you for inviting me to come stay with you. It’s so surreal to be here in your place. I’m so happy, Carter.” For some reason, her words bring a lump to my throat. I can’t even reply, so instead I tighten my embrace and savour the feeling of having her in my arms.
••••
“I love your apartment,” she says when we sit down to eat. I ran her a bath after showing her around, which took all of three minutes. There really isn’t much to see. My living area is open-plan. My kitchen and dining table is off to the left when you walk in the front door. I have an L-shaped black leather sofa over on the far side of the room, facing my large flat screen TV that’s mounted on the feature wall. To the left of the sofa, I have a full-size pool table and bar area. Behind that is the door that leads to my bedroom and the bathroom. “It’s the perfect bachelor pad,” she says with humour in her voice. “And so tidy. Do you have a cleaner or something?”
“Or something,” I reply flatly, suppressing my eye roll. I’ve always been pretty anal when it comes to things like that. Men are capable of keeping a clean house, despite what most people think. “Eat before it gets cold.”
I called Justine, my receptionist, before I left Sydney and asked her to pick up the ingredients I needed to make Fettucine Boscaiola. I knew it would be late by the time we arrived here, so I wouldn’t have time to shop.
“I can’t believe you cooked this,” she says twirling her pasta around her fork and popping it in her mouth. “It’s delicious.” I smile at her.
“Well I’ve lived alone for the past five years. It was learn how to cook or starve, I guess,” I reply chuckling.
“You’re a man of many talents.” I don’t miss the underlying meaning to her words. You better believe I am, sweetheart.
My dick stirs as I watch her lips slide over the metal utensil. If I wasn’t so worried about her keeping up her strength, I’d say to hell with dinner and throw her over my shoulder and take her straight to bed.
