Alluring Ink

by Ranae Rose

  * * * * *

  “I’m sorry I have to go.” Dylan stood with his duffel bag slung over one shoulder, taking a last look around Crystal’s apartment … and at Crystal.

  God, she looked good. She was wearing short shorts that showed off her long legs, and some sort of flowy lavender shirt that looked nice with her hair. Emily had flung mashed sweet potatoes on it, but it didn’t detract from her appeal. He realized, with a pang of regret, that by the time he returned from Newark – for good, this time – it’d be too cool for shorts.

  Crystal tsked. “And just when Emily’s come up with a name for you. Say bye-bye to Dwin, Emily.”

  Dylan made an exaggerated grimace. “Can it be something else?”

  “Nope.”

  “At least it’s not Wames.”

  “There’s that.” Crystal lifted Emily off her hip and set her down on the living room floor. “I’m really going to miss you.”

  Her hair was still mussed from the sex they’d had half an hour ago. He reached out to smooth it. “Enjoy the break. In a few weeks, you won’t be able to get rid of me.”

  She tilted her head back, and he kissed her like he was going to take her back to the bedroom and bid her a last long goodbye all over again.

  He didn’t, though. He was already running behind the schedule he’d set for himself. He had to get back to work with his most loyal Newark clients starting the next day, and he needed to get some rest that night. After years of tattooing there, he wasn’t about to leave on a bad note.

  “I’ll call you tonight,” he said. “Which begs the question…”

  “What?”

  “Now that we’re officially dating, is texting each other illicit photos part of the deal?”

  She grinned. “It’s only a few weeks, Dylan.”

  “Trust me, I can get all kinds of desperate in that amount of time.”

  “I guess I can count on you not dragging your feet with the move, then. I can’t wait until you’re back for good. Do you want me to send you any good rental listings I come across?”

  “Sure. Send them to me, along with the aforementioned photos.”

  He kissed her, then kissed her again. And finally left.

  * * * * *

  “Hey man.” Dylan walked into Ben’s apartment. The one upside to returning to Newark and missing Crystal was that he got to check in on Ben.

  “Hey.” Ben looked a lot better groomed than he had the last time Dylan had arrived in town.

  “How was work?”

  “All right. Word is I’ll be giving a 1968 Shelby GT500 a new paint job next week.”

  “Mustang?”

  Ben gave Dylan a pitying look. “Yeah … that’s a Mustang.”

  Given how excited Ben sounded about painting the car, Dylan concluded that his boss trusting him with the job meant that things were good for Ben at work again.

  It was a relief. Dylan couldn’t leave Ben on his own in Newark if he was struggling.

  They settled down on the couch and talked cars for a little while. Dylan got the sense Ben was toying with him, deeply amused by his lack of knowledge about classic muscle cars.

  Dylan was just glad to see him acting like his old self.

  “Why are you sitting all hunched up like an old man?” Ben asked after a while.

  Dylan stretched and purposely sat up straight. “Got a stitch in my side from tattooing all day long. It was a rib piece and I had to stay hunched over. Kills your back.”

  “Want some ibuprofen or something?”

  “Nah. I’ve got this topical stuff I put on my joints back at my apartment. I’ll do it when I get home. I don’t like to throw anything extra into the chemical cocktail if I don’t have to.”

  Ben shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

  Dylan used the mention of painkillers as an awkward segue into asking Ben how his medications were working out.

  “Not too bad. I still get that ringing in my ears, though. And sometimes it’s hard to sleep.”

  “You could ask the doctor about that. There’s stuff that can help.”

  “I really don’t want to take anything I don’t have to.”

  Dylan let it go. He didn’t want Ben to think he was smothering him.

  “Have you told anyone?” Dylan asked after a while.

  “Just my boss.”

  “He’s been pretty cool about it?”

  “He’s trusting me with the Shelby.” He said it like his boss was letting him polish the Holy Grail.

  Dylan held back a sigh of relief, forgetting about the ache in his back. Everything seemed to be going great with Ben, all things considered. He’d been half-scared that he’d come back and find that shit had hit the fan – that Ben had given up on his medications, or hit a bad mood again.

  This meant that in a couple weeks, Dylan could leave Newark without guilt following him. Without feeling like he was throwing his brother under the bus for the sake of a shiny new city and a relationship with Crystal.

  Things almost seemed too good to be true.

  * * * * *

  “About that money you gave me.” James leaned against the counter in his and Arianna’s kitchen. Arianna had gone shopping for maternity clothes, and suspicion flooded Crystal’s mind as she realized that James had purposely asked her over when Arianna wasn’t there.

  He wasn’t seriously going to try to give the money back to her, was he? He hadn’t mentioned it since she’d forced him to take it as a tip almost a month ago.

  “What about it?” She stood up straight and crossed her arms. She was not taking it back.

  “It took me a while to do it, because I didn’t know shit about this kind of thing, but I set up a 529 college savings plan for Emily.”

  Horror filled Crystal, along with an undercurrent of embarrassment. “Why? That money was yours! You and Arianna could’ve set up a plan for your baby. I can take care of Emily myself.”

  “We are going to set one up for the baby. I put half the money in Emily’s account, and the other half will go into the baby’s once it’s born.”

  That mollified her a little, but she still couldn’t shake the sense that she’d failed.

  “You could’ve used the money for baby stuff, or hospital bills,” she said. “Don’t act like you have great insurance that’ll cover it all – you and Arianna are both artists.”

  James shrugged. “I know having a kid’s going to be expensive, but I needed to feel like I was doing something to make sure that Emily and the baby don’t follow in our footsteps.”

  That shut her up for a few seconds, leaving her struggling to come up with a retort.

  “I don’t want my kid following in my footsteps,” he said. “Do you want Emily following in yours?”

  “Of course not! But they won’t – it’s not even possible. Their childhoods will be totally different than ours were.” Crystal was a single mom, but that was a hell of a lot better for a kid than having two parents who didn’t give a shit, or winding up in the foster care system.

  “I know. But I want them to have all the opportunities we didn’t have. They should have the chance to get educated when they’re older.”

  “I could’ve set up an account for Emily on my own.” Guilt pounced on her. Should she have done that already? It hadn’t even crossed her mind.

  “Well, I saved you the trouble. Don’t think of it as a favor that puts you in my debt – think of it as a gift for Emily.”

  Eventually, she nodded. “Fine. Thanks.”

  She wanted Emily to have every opportunity out there too – to feel like there were endless paths she could take, and her only burden was choosing the one that was right for her. And James was right – that was going to require an education of some sort.

  “I set it up so that you’re the custodian of Emily’s account. You can add to it if you want.”

  “I will. Hey … does Arianna know about all this?”

  “Yeah. We talked about it and both thought this was the best way to use the m
oney.”

  “Really?” She’d figured he’d made the decision without consulting Arianna, but knowing that they’d both agreed was a welcome revelation. Between this and the fact that Arianna supported Crystal’s relationship with Dylan, it was obvious that Crystal had a stronger ally – and friend – in Arianna than she’d realized.

  It was humbling, and exciting. The small circle of people she truly cared about and could rely on was growing. She’d never had anyone but James growing up, and then for years, no one at all. She liked this much better.

  “The only reason I wanted to talk to you about this alone was because I figured you’d give me a bunch of crap about it, and I thought you’d be comfortable enough to get it all out at once if no one else was around.”

  She scowled, then snorted. “Wow, so that’s what you really think of me? Do me a favor and say something to bring me back down to earth if I get too full of myself.”

  He didn’t laugh. “I know Emily will grow up to be smart and driven like you. I just don’t want her to have to scrape and claw her way to success.”

  Crystal tried to hide how much James’ words surprised her, but could feel the heat of a traitorous blush creeping across her face. “You think I’m successful?”

  “You’re independent now, supporting a kid on your own. You have a job you like, and those make-up videos. Can’t believe you make so much money off of them, but women can be weird. Arianna watches them.”

  “Really?” That put a grin on her face.

  “Yeah. And she’s bought a ton of new make-up because of you, so thanks for that.”

  “Why do you care? She has her own career – it’s not like she’s picking your pocket to buy it.”

  “It’s not about money – it’s the fact that she hogs the bathroom so she can use the mirror. Now that we live together, there’s just one bathroom, and between the make-up kick you’ve put her on and the fact that she’s pregnant, guess who gets to use it ninety percent of the time?”

  Crystal couldn’t help cracking up. It got Emily’s attention, and she stopped playing with her toy phone to laugh too, throwing a ‘Wames’ into the mix.

  “Why don’t you just buy her a nice tabletop vanity mirror? They’re pretty cheap, and she could use it on the kitchen table.”

  “I didn’t know those existed.”

  “Look online. They’re a dime a dozen.”

  “You should mention that in one of your videos. It’s a great tip.”

  Crystal rolled her eyes. “Anyone who’s watching my videos already knows about them. Everybody knows about them.”

  “I’m telling you, there are a lot of guys out there who’ve never thought of this and would buy them for the women in their houses.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind if I ever make a video for all the clueless men who’d never be caught dead watching my videos.”

  “I know of one guy who watches them.”

  “Who?”

  “Dylan.”

  “Yeah, right. How would you know?”

  “I got to work early a couple weeks ago, and I caught him sitting in his booth learning how to do something called a ‘smoky eye’ from you.”

  Crystal’s blush came back with a vengeance, and she struggled for something flippant and funny to say, so James wouldn’t know how cute she thought it was that Dylan actually watched her videos.

  “I was going to save that story to use as some sort of embarrassing blackmail, but since you’re already together, I figure there’s no point.”

  Crystal noted that James had brought up Dylan without mentioning any urges to kick his ass. Progress.

  * * * * *

  Three weeks and one day: that was how long Dylan had been gone. Crystal had counted each one, feeling his absence as she went about her daily life.

  They’d talked a lot on the phone, of course, and he’d convinced her to text him a picture of her wearing her shortest jean shorts, but there was no substitute for seeing him in the flesh … hearing his voice in-person, and feeling his touch.

  She was grinning like an idiot when he knocked on her door at three-thirty in the afternoon, in mid-September.

  CHAPTER 19

  Dylan stood at the threshold holding a bouquet of roses. “Sorry I’m running a little late. I stopped on the way here in an effort to be romantic.”

  The roses were red and the petals were like velvet against her fingertips as she accepted them. “Thank you. They are romantic.” She smiled. “What’s this?”

  He was holding a pink teddy bear.

  “Found it at the florist’s. Thought Emily might like it.”

  “It’s cute. She’ll love it.” The bear looked velvety too, with big green eyes that glittered and little embroidered paws.

  Dylan walked over to the play yard, where Emily was standing and watching with wide eyes.

  “Well, what do you think, Emily?” He held up the bear for her to examine.

  Emily babbled and smacked the bear in one of its oversized eyes.

  “Hey, that’s not very nice. Bears have feelings too, you know.”

  Emily just giggled and threw the bear on the floor when Dylan tried to give it to her.

  Crystal stared down at the bouquet Dylan had brought. It was the first time anyone had ever given her a bouquet of red roses, or roses of any color. It made her heart feel strangely light. With a spring in her step, she went to get water for the flowers.

  She didn’t have a vase, so she used a pitcher instead. When she turned back around, Dylan was crouched down by the play yard trying to high five Emily, who just grabbed his little finger and proceeded to twist it like she intended to wrench it right off. “Dwin!”

  The bear lay on the floor of the play yard.

  “That’s me. Dy-lan.” He didn’t seem to mind the odd angles Emily contorted his poor pinky finger into, and so Crystal came to his rescue.

  “She’s grown out of morning naps,” Crystal said, peeling Emily’s hand off of Dylan and lifting her out of the play yard. “She gets tired a little earlier now – it’s about her bedtime.”

  Emily had that unmissable sleepy look that said she needed to be put to bed, or her temper would come out to play.

  “Guess I arrived at just the right time then.” Dylan stood, and the look in his eyes sent a frisson down Crystal’s spine.

  Three weeks had felt like an eternity.

  “I have to give her a bath and get her ready for bed. I’ll be just a little while.” She grabbed the bear out of the play yard before taking it and Emily down the hall.

  Dylan waited on the couch for about twenty minutes, until she returned to the living room. His gaze locked on her immediately, and she couldn’t look away from him either.

  “God, I missed you,” she said, breathing in his scent as she finally wrapped her arms around him.

  “You have no idea how bad I missed you.” He wrapped his arms around her too, holding her tight.

  “Yes, I do.”

  “No, you don’t. After you sent me that picture of you in your shorts, shit got real. I walked into the edge of an open door and gave myself a black eye because I couldn’t stop looking at my phone.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Look.” He placed a hand beneath her chin and tilted her head back, so she was looking up at his face. Sure enough, there was the slight shadow of a faded bruise beneath his left eye.

  He kissed her deeply, but when it ended, she couldn’t stop herself from laughing.

  “Sorry. I don’t mean to mock your pain, but…”

  “I had to make up a story at work.”

  “What did you tell them?”

  “That my brother and I decided to try out boxing and he hit me in the eye.”

  “Well, I’ll keep your secret.” She rocked up onto her tiptoes, wanting another kiss.

  He pulled her hard against him, so that she could feel his rigid shaft pressing into her belly.

  “Let’s go back to the bedroom,” she said and twisted away, grabbin
g his hand and leading the way.

  By the time they reached the room, he’d caught up with her and gotten his hands on her waist. He spun her around, pulled her against him and gave her the kiss she’d been craving.

  She was wearing a dress she’d put on especially for him. The cut was simple, but it was silky and lightweight. When he pressed against her, it felt like she was wearing nothing at all. He gathered up the skirt, slipped his hand beneath it and touched her panties before he ended their kiss.

  She barely had a chance to draw breath before he eased her down onto the edge of the bed, whipped off her panties and pushed her thighs apart.

  “Fuck,” he said, his gaze trained on the tingling flesh he’d just exposed. She was wet – had been since the first time he’d kissed her – and so eager for his touch there that she was practically shaking.

  “If you’d sent me a picture of this, I probably would’ve accidentally walked into traffic.”

  “I’ll remember that if you ever ask for anything racier than a photo of me in a pair of short shorts.”

  He sighed and leaned in, pressing his mouth against the inside of one of her thighs. He worked his way upward slowly, kissing her skin and letting the tip of his tongue touch it every now and then, forcing her to think of how it’d feel against her clit.

  She couldn’t bear the wait. Nothing she’d done while he’d been gone had banished the tide of lust that’d threatened to drown her in impatience. Her own touch wasn’t the same as his – nothing was, or ever had been.

  When he finally pressed his mouth against her pussy, she arched on the edge of the bed, moaning. Three weeks of separation had left her more sensitive than ever. The tension that’d been building during their time apart came to a head quickly, and she came within minutes of him going down on her.

  There was no pause in her desire, not a single second that she didn’t crave more. She and Dylan had a lot of catching up to do, and she didn’t want to wait.