by K. S. Thomas
“What family thing? You’re family.”
“A Rob family thing.”
“Oh.” And here it is. The moment keeping the news about Marcus from Pru biting me in the ass. I knew it would arrive at some inopportune time or another and now it has. “Well, can’t you crash whatever they have going on?” If Pru knew, she would have insisted. Anything to keep Madi out of Marcus’s path, even if it means dealing with her in laws and their snide comments about Pru’s sister and said offspring.
“No way, dude. Last time I crossed paths with Rob’s brother and his snotty little wife, I nearly wound up body slamming that chick into the ground.” Madi sidles up to Cherry, who’s been doing her best to pretend she can’t hear us while she types up next week’s schedule on the computer. “Are those next week’s appointments? Is Sev Straight in there anywhere? I know he’s coming to town.”
“Don’t- don’t do that.”
Her eyes widen, as if she could possibly convince me of her innocence. “Do what?”
“Call him Sev like you know him or something.”
“You do.”
“Yeah. Because I do know him. Seen him naked, know him. It’s different.”
She smirks. “So that’s the criteria? I have to see him naked to call him Sev? I can work with that.”
Oh good God. “Time to go.” I pick her backpack up out of the chair and start to usher her out of the small reception area and away from the computer screen, which I know for a fact has Sev’s name on it as we speak.
“You’re no fun anymore.”
“I’ll be more fun when you’re no longer a minor,” I inform her on our way toward the back door. “I’m gonna drop Madi off at the house real quick. I’ll be back before my next appointment.” I stop briefly. “Wait. Who’s my next appointment?”
“Lucas,” Cherry calls back from the front.
“Perfect.” At least I can find ways to make it up to him if I’m late.
“You know, you’re kind of a hypocrite, Aunt Liv. Getting it on with a guy ten years younger than you and then having half a coronary when I express interest in a guy who’s barely old enough to buy liquor.”
“Nine.”
“Huh?”
“He’s nine years younger, not ten. And Seven’s age is not the issue here. Yours is. As soon as you turn eighteen you can run out and start boinking ninety-year-olds for all I care.”
She laughs. “Yeah, right. Eight measly little months are going to take you from overbearing aunt to I couldn’t care less if you have sex with Santa’s creepy uncle? I think we both know that’s complete bull.”
I’m doing my best not to crack up as well when we step into the back lot and wind up face to face with my brother. All sounds of laughter die instantly.
“I thought you weren’t supposed to be here until tonight. Don’t you have a fucking home? A scummy motel room? A card board box, or better yet, a fucking rock to crawl under? Why the hell am I tripping over your ass every time I walk out of this door?”
I can feel Madi tense up behind me, holding onto my arm, almost like she’s little again.
Marcus notices her almost instantly. It’s been years since he’s seen her, but she looks just like her mother. He’s blood seems to drain from his face, turning it pale as if he’s seen a ghost. Then he recovers with ease, hiding any remnants of possible feelings he might have felt.
“Well, if it isn’t the apple of my eye, all grown up.” The tone of his voice sends shivers down my spine. Sometimes I swear I don’t even know who he is anymore. It scares me. He scares me.
“Drop dead, Marcus,” Madi spats from behind me.
He feigns his hurt and shock over her words. Neither are even remotely believable. “This is how you talk to your father? And you,” he points at me, “you’re just going to let her? If this is how you’ve been raising her, maybe you’re not suited to be her guardian after all.”
My blood is rapidly rising to a boil, but I grit my teeth and force my way through this conversation anyway. “He’s right, Madi. Mind your manners.”
“Fine. Drop dead, Marcus, please.” She smirks. “Happy?”
“Very much. Thanks.” I turn toward my brother. “There. All better now?”
He’s about to come back at me with another argument when a black sedan catches his gaze as it pulls into the parking lot, heading for the warehouse. Every cell in my body is screaming to get Madi the hell out of here. The feeling only gets worse when I realize my brother is having the same exact reaction to seeing his boss pull up.
“Go. Now,” he hisses through clenched teeth and for the first time in as long as I can remember, I do exactly what he says.
“Stop pushing me,” Madi grumbles as I shove her into the passenger seat of my car.
“Get your head down.”
“Have you lost your ever loving mind?” She’s glaring at me like I’m a crazy person, but I don’t have time to make myself seem saner right now. I have to focus so I don’t fumble with the keys or draw any unnecessary attention to us by peeling out of the lot, or worse yet, hitting the truck parked behind me.
“Just do what I say, Madi.” I glance in the rearview mirror and see Marcus hurrying over to meet his boss, who chooses this particular moment to point at my car as I’m taking off. “Shit.”
“What the hell just happened?” She’s scared now. I don’t know if that’s good or bad. I guess if it’ll keep her ass as far away from the shop as possible, I’m counting it as a positive.
“That man who just pulled up in that fancy car? Yeah, your dad works for him. Or they’re partners or something. I don’t fucking know. All that matters is that he’s bad news. Scary as fuck bad news. So you need to do what I asked you to in the first place and not come by the shop right now.”
“Okay!” That annoyed teenager vibe is kicking in again. It’s a natural defense to everything. I learned that a long while ago.
“Thank you.” My heart is still racing even though we’re not even on the same street anymore. I suddenly wish we lived farther away. More distance between us and that creep would really be welcome right now.
“Aunt Liv?”
“Uh-huh?” My gaze keeps running back to the rearview mirror. I know I’m being paranoid. No one’s following us. Marcus probably already handled it, whatever there was to handle. I just wish he hadn’t looked so scared. Show fear and you’re dead. He never shows fear.
“Are you in danger when you’re at work? Are you guys even safe there right now?”
Probably not.
“Of course.”
“Are you lying?”
“Of course.” I turn toward her and force myself into a toothy grin. “Look, I’ve got it under control, K? Just trust me. And for the love of cake, stay away until I tell you it’s safe to come by again.”
She nods, her lips pressed together tightly.
We drive in silence for the next several blocks. Then we’re home. And safe. And we know it.
“Any chance you’ll tell me it’s safe sometime before next week?” Madi asks as she’s getting out of the car.
“Highly unlikely.”
“Because of scary dude or because I’m not allowed to drool all over Seven Straight until I’m the big 1 – 8?”
“Both. Now get inside and lock the door behind you. I have to get back to work.”
“Be careful.”
“Always.” I smack my lips together and kiss the air, pointing this display in her general direction. She in turn rolls her eyes at me and waves before slamming the door shut and heading for the house. I watch until she disappears inside. Then I hurry back to the shop. The sooner I get back, the less likely it is that Lucas will require an in depth explanation regarding my tardiness.
Lucas
After being stuck in the car with Juli for the last twenty minutes, I’ve come to the unpleasant realization I don’t like her. Up until now, I’ve only ever been exposed to her in small doses. In passing, or at an event so large we were in no way
obligated to exchange more that pleasantries with one another. But this drive here, with just her and Memphis, complete torture.
“You know, you should really let me set you up with one of my girlfriends. Then we could double date!” Good God, if this is the conclusion she’s come to after the last round of grunt and grumble responses from me, she really is an idiot.
“I’m with someone.” And I’m over making polite small talk.
“He’s seeing Heartbreaker,” Memphis explains. He sounds like he’s on autopilot when he talks to her. The words come out. They make sense, but he’s checked out.
“The one with the tattoos on her face?” I don’t need to see her expression to know she disapproves. Her tone just said it all.
“Yeah.” So did mine.
“Oh. Well, she seems nice.” God, she’s fake. What the hell does Memphis see in her? “Is it serious though?” She laughs as if she’s made a joke. “Listen to me – is it serious?! How serious could it be?!”
“Excuse me?” Memphis needs to stop the car, and now. I need out of the backseat and as far away from Juli as humanly possible.
“I just mean, she’s clearly not the woman you’re going to marry. Can you imagine?”
“Yeah. I can.”
“Drop it, Jules,” Memphis warns her quietly. “Lucas isn’t interested in dating any of your friends. Trust me.”
I can see her reflection in the rear view mirror. She’s pouting now. At least it’s in silence.
Even better. We’re finally here.
“I’d thank you for driving if I didn’t feel like you owe me an apology for offering me a ride,” I grumble as we walk across the lot up to the front door.
“Sorry, dude. I forget how she sounds when you don’t know her.”
I find it hard to believe that getting to know her could possibly improve my impression of her, but for the sake of our friendship I nod.
“Welcome to – oh. Never mind.” Princess ends her greeting with a dismissive wave in our direction and slowly meanders out from behind the counter to see us. “What brings you boys in here tonight?” She gives me a much faster once over this time, and saves the slow undressing with her eyes for Memphis, completely disregarding Juli, who seems temporarily frightened into continued silence.
“My girl is thinking about getting a piece done. Thought maybe one of you could squeeze her in. Won’t be anything major. It’s her first one,” Memphis explains, purposefully moving his arm around Juli’s waist and bringing her closer to him. I’ve got to hand it to him, he knows how to maneuver around the sticky parts of a relationship smoothly.
“Mouth can do it.” Princess stares straight at Juli as she says it, her usual sweet demeanor underlined with a wicked pleasure. Either she’s got a mean streak I’ve never encountered before now, or this isn’t her first interaction with Juli.
“Sketch isn’t free?” Even as he’s asking, Memphis is searching the place for her. She wouldn’t be my first choice, given their history, but I guess the prospect of handing his girlfriend over to Mouth armed with her standard grit and a needle would make just about anyone else a more comforting option. If Juli brings out the evil queen in Princess, I can only imagine what will happen when she’s exposed to Mouth for any length of time.
“Right, because Sketch always has all sorts of free time when she’s here. What with being top bitch in the business and all.” Princess isn’t holding back at all tonight. Maybe it’s not Juli after all. Maybe she’s just pissed the fuck off in general.
“Uh...Heartbreaker in back?” I’d go see for myself except I don’t want to leave these two alone with Princess.
“No. She had to run Madi back to the house. Should be back any second though.” And she’s sweet as pie again. So she’s not in a foul mood, she just doesn’t like Juli. Well, I can relate.
“Cool. I’ll just go wait for her in her station.” And I take off, leaving Memphis to fend for himself and his snotty girlfriend.
There’s a half empty cup of coffee sitting on her desk when I get there, along with a sketch of a woman she was working on. Madi’s visit must have been unexpected. And she must have been in a damn hurry to get her out of here. Only one reason for that.
“Where are you going?” Sketch’s voice travels over from her station just as I’m headed for the back door.
“To check something.” I turn back, glaring, prepared to argue with her, but she’s buried behind some dude’s massive calf, not even looking at me.
“Check your ass into a chair and chill out. She’s fine. I just talked to her. She’ll be walking in any second.”
I don’t like it, but I abort my mission to track down Marcus. For the moment. I stare at the cold coffee for a second then reach for the mug. When it comes to taking care of this girl, I guess I’m going to have to settle for the small things right now, like making sure she has a fresh, hot cup of coffee just the way she likes when she walks back in here.
I’m just topping off her mega sized mug with some half and half when I hear her voice from the front of the building.
“Memphis, haven’t seen you around here in a long minute. I can’t believe you haven’t been in sooner. Lucas told me you’ve been back in town for a while already.”
Judging by the sound of shuffled steps and muffled contact noises, he’s gotten up from Mouth’s station to greet her. They’re embracing just as I turn the corner.
“Yeah. Decided to take some time off this summer.”
I’m pretty sure Juli insisted on it. Wanted to spend some quality time with their families. Only, Memphis is on the outs with his, so that hasn’t really panned out thus far.
“Everything okay?” I ask, coming up beside her.
“Not really.” She doesn’t even try to bullshit me this time. We must be making progress. “Is that for me?”
Her big eyes land smack on the coffee cup in my hand.
“Maybe.”
“Is that code for yes?”
“Gag me. You guys are disgusting,” Mouth blasts us from her station. “Now get a room so I can get back to work over here. Chicki-poo won’t sit still if her man isn’t holding her hand.”
I catch Memphis start to roll his eyes right before he notices me watching and hurries over to sit with Juli instead. When I turn back toward Liv, she’s grinning.
“Sure you don’t want a sweet and pure one like her?”
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t just ask me that.”
“Can I have that coffee now?”
“Does Mouth know about us?”
“Yeah. Why?”
I answer her by pressing my lips to hers just long enough for a proper hello. Then, I hand her the cup. “Here you go.”
“I can’t believe you just did that,” she gasps.
“Really? After what I did to you this morning on your kitchen counter, I would think a teensy tiny kiss would have been easy to believe. Anticipate even.”
She blushes, a sight I’m getting used to, but still find undeniably adorable.
“Come on,” she mumbles, pinching the material of my shirt and dragging me back to her corner. “Let’s get this tattoo of yours done so you can stop stalking me at work.”
“I’m pretty sure we both know I’m still going to keep showing up here.”
She looks back at me over her shoulder, fighting the smile I can clearly see in her eyes. “You’re a real pain in my ass, you know that?”
“Says the woman who repeatedly thwarts my efforts to romance her even though we both know she’s crazy about me. I’m pretty sure that’s the definition of pain in one’s ass.”
“I’m not crazy about you. You make me crazy. There’s a difference. And you should know, the latter isn’t nearly as flattering.”
“We were comparing each other to hemorrhoids a second ago. I’m pretty clear that flattery is not part of the equation at this point in the conversation.”
Her stern expression shifts to disgust and then amused. “God, I hate you.”
“Is that code for I love you?”
“GAG ME!” Mouth’s voice rings out from the other side of the shop. Sound travels well in here. I’ll have to remember that. Meanwhile, Liv is busying herself with setting up as if the last five minutes never happened. They did. Her cheeks are beet red and her lips are squirming even as she’s doing her best to keep them pressed together straight. They definitely happened.
Chapter Sixteen
Heartbreaker
Juli’s tattoo was done in a matter of minutes. I only caught part of Mouth’s grumblings, but I believe she went for something generic in the way of a butterfly. No original art, just something random she found when she googled images. We used to get a lot of those when we first opened and no one knew who we were or what we were about. I don’t mind doing them, but some of the girls almost take offense to pre-drawn silhouettes. We’re in it for the art, and there isn’t much room or need for skill and creativity when it comes to tracing.
Now that Juli’s got her little flutter of ink on her ankle, she’s sitting propped up in a chair beside my station, watching me with an unnerving scrutiny I’m not accustomed to from people who don’t know squat about getting tattooed. Which means of course, she’s not studying me in regard to my work, but rather as the potential woman in Lucas’s life. I should tell her not to bother. She’s not going to approve. Thankfully, I don’t need her to.
“It looks like yours,” she observes, nodding at Memphis whose curiosity is definitely directed at the piece and nothing else.
“It’s supposed to,” Lucas mutters dryly.
“So you two have matching tattoos? Baby, I want matching tattoos.” She pushes her lip out in a pout. I want to reach out and pinch it. Apparently, it doesn’t bring out the same aggressive tendencies in Memphis, who briefly turns toward her, smiling. “I told you, that’s bad luck.”
“You said getting someone’s name tattooed on you was bad luck.” Her voice is whiny in a way I’ve sometimes imagined Pru talking to Rob when she wants to buy a new pair of shoes she’s never going to wear.
