by Leslie North
“Gio,” Riley yelped. One hand over her heart, she turned to face him. “Oh, my god, you scared me. Before I realized it was you, I was sure someone had broken in and I was going to have to take them down.”
“Yeah, what’s that all about?” Giovanni took a few steps closer, naturally pulled to her. He hadn’t forgotten the night they’d spent together. “You flipped me onto the floor without breaking a sweat before. I didn’t think you had it in you. You need a personal trainer at the same time you met Amanda?”
Riley laughed. “No. My sorority was a big promoter of women’s safety and self-defense, so all of us took lessons and pledged to teach other women on campus how to protect themselves as well. Some things stick with you.”
“I guess.” Giovanni looked her over, eager to tell her that she was one of the things that would stick with him, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. There were unresolved feelings between them that still needed to be sorted out. “So. What are you doing here? The shop doesn’t open for four hours.”
When had they drawn so close? They stood almost chest to chest, the scent of Riley’s perfume subtle on the air between them. Giovanni looked down at her, and Riley looked up at him. The chemistry that drew them together raised goosebumps along his arms and teased the hairs on the back of his neck.
“I know,” Riley said softly. She only raised her voice enough for his ears to hear it. “Mal called me last night after you fell, said that you were in the ER and that you were sure you’d broken your wrist. He told me it was your tattooing hand.” Riley tapped her heel against the floor. “So I figured as co-manager, I needed to pick up the slack and help you in your time of need. All of the notes were on your slide show, so I knew what you were going to talk about. The rest was just getting the presentation down.”
Giovanni’s throat tightened, but his face remained a mask. The fact of the matter was, Riley was there early because she wanted to take the burden off him. He knew how uncomfortable she felt while tattooing, but she was taking the lead for him.
Maybe it was time to do something for her as well.
“I think you’re doing great,” he said gently. There was no need for volume when they stood so close together. “Why don’t you give the rest of the presentation to me, and if you do it justice, you can take over… for good.”
Riley’s eyes widened. “What?”
“You’ve got the skill to do it. All you’re lacking is the portfolio.” Giovanni shrugged. More than anything, he wanted to reach out and run his hand along her arm, then draw her close to his chest. He missed her touch. One night together was all it took. He’d never felt so strongly about a woman before.
Riley was something special.
“I think, with the right exposure, you’re going to find that the rest of the world thinks you’re made of the right stuff, too. Clearly, Amanda Tate thought so.”
Visibly stunned, Riley took a small step back and nodded. The pink on her cheeks matched her lips, and Giovanni’s heart soared at the sight of her. God, was she gorgeous.
“I’ll do my best,” she promised.
Giovanni already knew that she’d surpass his expectations and rise to the occasion.
If he resigned, he thought to himself, beneath Riley’s management, Thorn Tattoo just might have a chance.
The summer dress she wore framed her body perfectly. Beneath the bright lights of the Royal Caravan Casino, her dark eyes sparkled and her skin was more radiant than ever.
Bit by bit, Riley was letting go of all the negativities that held her back, and she was coming into herself. It showed, and Giovanni felt blessed he was there to witness it.
“Outlining is one of the fundamentals of tattooing, but it’s something where a lot of young, inexperienced, or careless artists go wrong. Because outlining is so necessary to the tattooing process, it’s important to nail it the first time around. Remember that the more passes you make, the bigger the chance of causing dermal trauma. The last thing you want is to break your client’s skin. Some bleeding is bound to happen no matter how careful you are, but if you overwork the skin, it can lead to really terrible damage. That’s the kind of thing that will tear apart a good tattoo, and can cause serious infection if proper aftercare isn’t taken. It’s vital to get it right.”
Giovanni sat at the front of the room beside some tattooers from a smaller shop off the main strip. Everyone in the room was visibly inked except for the instructor, but despite her virgin status, Riley commanded their attention. No one in the room doubted her prowess, and Giovanni wondered if word had already started to spread about her unexpected skill.
“Depending on the style you’re going for, your outlining will be different. Sometimes you’ll need bold and thick lines. Sometimes you’ll need subtle lines. What I can promise you is that in your piece, no matter what size your lines are, they should be uniform with each other as long as they’re on the same field. Varying thicknesses will lead to visual imbalances that’ll throw off the composition of the tattoo, and that’s the last thing you want when that client is going to be wearing your work for the rest of their life.”
No one spoke over her, no one interrupted, and as far as Giovanni could see, no one refused to pay attention. The turnout was spectacular, and Riley was commanding the audience with the grace of a tattoo artist with a reputation ten times bigger.
Riley changed slides, and a side-by-side comparison of two tribal tattoos appeared on the screen. One was expertly done with fine attention to detail, and the other was novice. Riley turned away from the screen and looked directly at Giovanni, smiling. There was something about her in that moment that was airy and liberated, like he’d given her the keys to the world, and she was finally confident enough to take them.
“My colleague, Gio, is an expert with line work, and I’m sure he has a lot to say on the topic, especially concerning pictures like these.” Riley gestured back at the screen. “Gio, you want to come up here and tell us a little bit more about the outlining process, and what different styles of tattoos need?”
Giovanni had been so busy watching Riley that he was caught by surprise at her question. As he rose to his feet, Riley winked at him and gestured to the empty spot beside her.
Even though he’d handed her the reins, she still wanted to include him. A tingling feeling spread through his chest, and he joined her at the front.
“Tribal tattoos are a great example of why line work is so important.” His mouth spoke on autopilot, but his attention was all on Riley. He watched her out of the corner of his eye and saw how she smiled at him. It was as though he was the most important person in the world.
Even when she was put in a position of power, Riley didn’t abuse her station, and she didn’t take anything for granted. There was nothing obligating her to bring him into the presentation, but she’d gone out of her way to include him anyway. A smile quirked the corners of Giovanni’s lips, and no matter what he did, he couldn’t shake it. Riley was looking out for him. Riley was caring for him in all the small ways she could. Riley cared.
It didn’t matter what the future held for him professionally, or what steps he’d need to take to make things right with Thorn Tattoo. Whether he quit, or whether they found another way, Giovanni knew that he needed Riley in his life as more than his coworker.
Since she’d come to Thorn Tattoo, Riley had done everything she could to make things right for him. It was time he finally returned the favor and did right by her.
19
Riley
The presentation ended, and Riley packed away her supplies and made sure all of her needles were secured before she started cleanup. The Royal Caravan Hotel needed them to make sure the room was free of ink and other materials before they vacated the premises. Giovanni had left unannounced halfway through the presentation and hadn’t returned, so Riley was left to do the work herself. She didn’t mind, but she wondered where he’d gone. Part of her reasoned that with his broken wrist, he needed more downtime to recover
and he was going home to sleep. A smaller, but more vocal part convinced her that she’d embarrassed him by dragging him up to deliver some of the presentation. It felt like no matter what she did, she was making wrong turns. But it was hard to know what was right when she couldn’t figure Giovanni out.
Strong, silent, brooding, brash, he was the kind of man she could spend years getting to know on a surface level. The executives she’d dated, while climbing the social ladder in New York following her graduation, had been the same. There were layers to peel back and rules to learn, and she was left to find her way through the dark.
Riley refused to give up.
There was a good chance that Giovanni didn’t want her, and now that he’d had his way with her, he’d show her the door. There was a good chance she’d sacrificed what could have been a dream career over a moment of passion. Yet, the thought of Giovanni wouldn’t fade from her mind no matter how much she wished it would. He was under her skin and in her head, and Riley knew she wanted more. Needed more.
If that wasn’t in the cards, maybe it was better that she moved on.
The room emptied. On the way out, several artists stopped to congratulate her on a presentation well given. Some asked her questions about her techniques, and Riley was glad to elaborate. By the time she was the only one left in the room, it was late. With a yawn and a stretch, she finished cleanup and went to gather her materials so she could leave. As she turned toward the door, she stopped short.
Giovanni stood in the doorway. Cradled in his left arm was a bouquet of roses, the red buds barely peeping out from behind the plastic wrapping. Riley looked between him and the flowers as her heart raced.
He stepped forward. “You did a great job with the presentation,” he said softly. “I know you’re not confident in your technical skills, but you hit it out of the park tonight. I think even the pros walked away learning something new.”
Flattered but embarrassed, Riley glanced to the side. She occupied herself with setting her bag down as she tried to still her beating heart. Hearing Giovanni praise her was like nothing else. “Thanks.”
“These are for you,” he said. He held the bouquet out, and Riley accepted it gingerly. She clutched the roses to her chest, knowing that there was no way in hell she’d ever be able to talk herself out of her excitement. The logical part of her brain told her it was simply a sweet gesture for Giovanni to give her flowers after her first successful workshop presentation. The emotional side of her brain insisted it meant more. “I wanted to stick around for the full presentation, but I had a few things I needed to tend to.”
“Oh.” Riley looked the bouquet over, feeling too overwhelmed to look at Giovanni. She knew if she lifted her chin that he’d tempt her. From his rippling muscles and the professional cut of his suit to the rugged handsomeness of his face, she was powerless against him. “That’s fine, really. It went exceptionally well.”
“I figured.” Giovanni paused. “When I left, I went to meet up with Antonio. There were a few things I wanted to talk to him about.”
That startled Riley enough to lift her chin and look Giovanni in the eyes. Her heart raced not out of attraction, but out of fear. “Oh?”
“I’ve been crunching the numbers you laid out, trying to make it work… and no matter what I did, nothing’s adding up.” Giovanni lifted his right hand and displayed his cast. “On top of that, I broke my wrist at the worst possible time. There’s no way that we can salvage the quarter without doing something drastic. So, I went to Antonio and told him everything. About you tattooing, about the workshops, and about all the overtime you’re putting in these days to make sure everything runs smoothly.”
Riley’s ankles wobbled, and she leaned back against the desk for support. Giovanni narrowed an eye and grinned, but didn’t say anything. Was he really letting her go? Riley had never been fired before. If this was a goodbye, she’d never tempt fate and return to tattooing again. Her father had been right. Nothing good had ever come out of art.
“So we chatted for a while about the quarter, and expectations for the quarters to follow if you kept doing what you’re doing, and I get back to it after my wrist heals. Antonio’s incredibly impressed by your work, and he’s already heard mention of your name through word of mouth.” Giovanni’s grin grew, and Riley trembled. “Mitch? The client you tattooed a while ago? He hasn’t got a lot of visible ink, but it turns out he’s some big shot at Inked magazine, and everyone he knows is a big name with big connections. They’ve all been talking about you, Thorn Tattoo, and the workshops.”
“Oh my god,” Riley whispered. She raised a hand to cover her mouth, eyes wide. “You’re kidding me.”
“Nope. It’s the honest-to-god truth. So not only is Antonio impressed, but he’s under the impression that the next few quarters to come are going to be explosive for Thorn Tattoo. We’re going to go from a middle-to-high range shop to a powerhouse in the industry… if you keep tattooing for us.”
There were no words Riley could think to say that would properly convey her emotions. She thought back to Amanda, and how their friendship had been sparked by art. Now she was being hailed as a giant in an industry that she loved with all her heart. Amanda’s death had been the catalyst to bring her out here to Vegas. Riley was meant to tattoo.
And honoring Amanda’s memory would be far easier as an artist than as a manager.
“I know that you’ve got some emotional baggage about tattooing, but I’m ready to work around that. We can start small, and you can be exclusive. Maybe only a few customers a week. Then, if you feel like you can do more, we can—”
“No.” Riley shook her head, tears beading in her eyes. Giovanni’s face instantly fell. He thought she was rejecting the offer entirely. “No, I mean… it’s not necessary to start small.” Riley wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, careful not to smudge her eyeliner. “I’m ready to take on full-time work. I want to do this. I want to see Thorn Tattoo succeed.”
She wanted to see Giovanni flourish, too, but she didn’t admit it. The mess that was their relationship was separate from the work she did, and she didn’t want to confuse them. Giovanni made her feel jumbled enough as it was.
“I want to see you succeed, too,” he whispered, as though he read her mind. Riley’s posture went rigid, and she felt herself tense all over. The back and forth between fear and stunning attraction flipped again. Her heart beat strong for him. “I want to see you smiling and glowing with happiness, just like you were tonight. I want to see you come to work every day in love with what you do.”
Softly, Riley’s lips parted. “I don’t need to tattoo for that to happen,” she whispered.
The distance between them had closed. Giovanni stood so close they were almost chest to chest. Riley set the roses down on the desk, wanting nothing more than to wrap her arms around him and hold him close.
“Maybe not.” Giovanni reached out and cupped her jaw. The palm of his hand was warm, and the skin of his thumb, as it traced along her cheek was rough, masculine, and protective. “But I want you to reach for your dreams and accomplish them. I want you to be satisfied in all walks of your life, not just one.”
Was he saying what she thought he was? Riley pressed her cheek gently against his hand, eager for his touch.
“Then I feel like we have plenty to talk about,” she murmured. “I’m satisfied with my job, Gio. It’s going to be hard at first, but I know now that I’m meant to tattoo. There’s something else I want, though. I’ve wanted it for a long time now.”
“I know.” His voice was a deep baritone that curled in her stomach and clenched in her core. “That’s on me. That’s always been on me. You deserved better, and I wasn’t the man you needed. But today, since all this shit went down with my wrist… since I saw you rising up and taking control, doing what was right for the shop instead of what was right for you, I realize what an ass I’ve been this entire time.”
The confession flowed from him, and Riley had no doubt th
at it was genuine. She bit the inside of her lip to keep from interrupting him. How was she supposed to listen when she wanted to throw her arms around his neck, pull herself close, and kiss him until her jaw ached and her lips were sore?
Taking care of the shop had never been about him, but knowing that the work she did might help him reach his dreams too made what she did even more fulfilling.
“I want to work with you toward building a better future, Riley. I don’t want to fight you anymore.” Giovanni’s hand tightened slightly on her jaw, and he drew her face a hair closer. Their noses brushed, and Riley closed her eyes in anticipation of his lips. “I want to make things right between us, both at the shop, and outside of it. I’m sick of pretending you don’t mean shit to me because of pride and arrogance. You mean the fucking world to me already, and I barely know you. I can’t imagine what I’ll feel like once we’re a year into this, actually giving us a try. I don’t want you only for sex, I want you for you. You’re one of the most intelligent, beautiful, charismatic women I’ve ever met, and I want to do good by you.”
The words pulsed inside of her, and Riley reveled in each one of them. Her body reacted to his nearness and she felt the air between their lips move as he spoke.
“Let me prove myself outside the shop. I don’t give a shit about dating coworkers, or workplace drama, or whatever else. If you want me to quit this job, I’ll fucking do it. All I want is a chance to get to know you better, and to bring you into my life.”
How did he know how to say every word so right? Riley opened her eyes slightly to find his were still open, his expression sincere. Giovanni meant everything he said.
“I want you, too,” she said softly. “There’s something about you that hooks me and refuses to let me go. They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting different results. If I let you go because I was afraid… if I walked away from someone who means so much to me, even if I can’t rationalize that attraction, I’d be repeating the past. I walked away from tattooing once because I was bullied into quitting, and I regretted it. I refuse to let that happen to me again with you.”
