House of Payne: Sage

by Stacy Gail

  “It’s all about perspective.” With a determined air, her sister unhooked the garment bag and faced Mads. “What you’re going to do is get dressed and spruce yourself up like never before.”

  She’d rather have root canal. “I am?”

  “You are. Then you’re going to go down there and wow everyone who lays eyes on you, because we’re going to treat tonight as your personal birthday party. We’re going to drink and eat and party our asses off, and nothing’s going to stop us. Now, are you going to do your makeup, or shall I?”

  A few minutes before six, Mads descended the brick glass and metal staircase with her sister by her side and iron-laden butterflies in her stomach. She would have given her next month’s salary to just duck out the back door and not return until the New Year, but Payne had made it clear she needed to be there.

  “There’s Sage. Before I went up to see you, he promised to be on the lookout for Lorenzo.” Rena pointed toward the front of the building, where Payne and Scout were welcoming their guests. Mads followed the gesture, sifting through the glittering, well-heeled crowd working their way into the building, before spying Sage off to one side. He turned toward the staircase to watch them descend, and all at once the gloomy cloud she’d been mired in all day lifted. She smiled—no matter how desperate their current situation was, she couldn’t help but smile at the sight of him—and would have zipped down to greet him had it not been for Serena’s hand tightening on her arm.

  “How much you wanna bet I get stood up by this guy,” she muttered, slowing her pace and grabbing for the railing with her free hand. “And here I am, wearing my flashiest heels that I can’t even walk in. Don’t let me trip.”

  “I got you, girl.” Mads slowed her pace as well. No matter what was going on, a woman never abandoned her sister when she was having high heel troubles. “I’ve got to admit, those are some wicked-looking stilettos you’ve got going on.”

  “You should talk. You bought your shoes on an online stripper’s store, didn’t you?”

  “I’ll never tell.” But her sister wasn’t far wrong. The platform black and silver heels she had strapped to her feet were pure sex, just like the club dress she wore. It didn’t even really look like a dress. It was borderline lingerie, as if someone had taken a black corset, put about a million crystals on the bodice, then sewed a micro miniskirt on the bottom just to make it legal—barely.

  Her makeup was just as dramatic as her sister’s, mainly because she’d insisted on going all out, and her short hair was fuller and almost spiked, thanks to the copious amounts of product she and Serena had put in it. A chunky crystal necklace and earrings rounded out the look, and for a moment she feared tumbling down the stairs herself. Sage had never seen her gussied up like this. It would be just like her to cartwheel her ass down the remainder of the stairs and ruin the freaking moment…

  She heard her sister heave a sigh of relief when they made it down to the first floor in one piece, before she turned to Sage as he joined them. “Hey, there. We’re not late, are we?”

  “Coming in hot the way you just did, who gives a shit what time it is.” Clearly not shy about showing how he felt about her appearance, Sage swept her into his arms. Much to her shock, he whipped her around and dropped her into a dancer-like dip. “I’m about to fuck up that lipstick. Deal with it.”

  “It’s smudge-proof,” she tried to assure him, but he was already there, kissing her so deeply the world faded away until it was just the two of them. It was a wondrous world, perfect and filled with heat and lust and all the hopeless love she had for him. But all too soon he had her back on her feet, breathless and her equilibrium teeter-tottering. “Wow. Hi, Sage.”

  “Hi yourself. Happy birthday, baby.”

  She couldn’t help but smile. “You’ve already wished me happy birthday earlier today, when you dropped me off at my tattooing booth.”

  “Yeah, well, I’m your man. It’s my right to wish my woman happy birthday as many damn times as I want.”

  “I think that’s very sweet,” Serena announced, somewhat loudly, then grinned when they both looked to her in surprise. Or at least Mads was surprised. She’d forgotten her sister was standing right there. “Hiya, Sage. I forgot to tell you that you’re looking very sharp tonight.”

  “Right back atcha.” He tucked Mads close to his side, his hand coming to rest in silent possession on the flare of her hip. She couldn’t help but agree with her sister; Sage did look incredibly good, in black pants and shoes, a crisp white shirt and a vest patterned with geometric blocks in shades of gray. “I’m glad you could come tonight, Serena. It’s always good to have friends and family in your corner when you’re making your big art debut, so it’s great that Mads has you here.”

  “Though, of course, I’m not debuting anything,” Mads muttered, her momentary delight dimming. His arm around her squeezed, causing her to glance up at him, and she was surprised to find him smirking at her.

  What…?

  “Wow, you look gorgeous, Mads.”

  Before Mads could ask Sage what the look was for, Scout came their way, followed by Payne. Both were decked out in party finery, though Payne still wore his signature suspenders and Scout was pure Rockabilly from head the stiletto-sheathed toe. “Thanks, Scout, though I still don’t know why I’m here. I mean, it’s not like I actually have anything that’s going to go up on the auction block tonight.”

  “Yeah, about that.” Payne cleared his throat and swept a magnanimous hand toward the gallery. “In just a few minutes, we’re going to be letting the crowds in to view the art pieces before the bidding can begin. But I think Sage should show you around before it gets too crazy. We’ll keep an eye on your guest for you,” he added when her bewildered gaze bounced to her sister. “Go and enjoy yourself.”

  That seemed to be the signal Sage was waiting for. “Let’s go, Daniels.”

  “What the hell, Sage,” Mads muttered as Sage led her around the red velvet ropes cordoning off the gallery area from the rest of the first floor. “First you’re giving me knowing, smirking looks and now Payne and Scout are acting weird. What’s going on?”

  “What’s going on is a birthday surprise,” he said, and there was an excitement around him that was almost palpable. “You like surprises, right?”

  “Usually.” She gave it some thought. “Maybe. It depends.”

  “Heh. Perfect skittish answer if there ever was one. Never change, Skittish.”

  No one would have blamed her for kicking him in the shins, she was sure of it. “I just want to know what’s going on.”

  “If you could walk any faster in those shoes, you’d find out that much sooner.”

  “I don’t know what I was thinking, buying these things,” she admitted, looking down at the platform heels she was tottering on. “Serena’s right. The best accessory for these shoes is a stripper pole. I have half a mind to go back upstairs and trade them out for my Chucks.”

  “Someday I’m going to fuck you with you wearing those shoes and nothing else,” he said, his voice lowering even though they were all alone in the maze of walls now decorated by brilliant works from their fellow tattooists. “Seeing you come down those stairs, wearing that dress and those shoes, made my dick throb and my heart pound, and all I could do was stare at you. Swear to God, if I could get away with fucking you here and now I would, but I’ve got something even more important to get to.”

  “More important that sex?” She put a hand to her chest and tried to ignore how his bold admission had that place between her legs stirring with heat. They hadn’t had sex since her life blew up, and while her brain still didn’t know what to do with him, her body clearly had no such qualms. “This birthday surprise must really be a big deal.”

  “It is. Because it’s all about you.”

  Damn it, how was she supposed to resist him when he was being so sweet? “When you say things like that, I melt a little inside. Did you know that?”

  “I do now.” He reached f
or her hand and brought it to his lips, and all the while his eyes never left hers. “Prepare to be melted all the way through, because I’m about to show you… this.”

  With that, he guided her around the corner to face a wall with only one painting on it.

  Her breath caught, a strangled, jagged sound as she stared in stunned incomprehension at Darkness, Vanquished beside a bronze plaque with her name on it.

  “But… this is…” She took a step closer, as if that would help her understand what she was seeing. When that didn’t help, she turned to him. “What?”

  “Scout said it best—the whole world wants to see what’s so special about you. This,” he added, nodding to the painting, “will show the world exactly how special you are.”

  “But it’s yours, Sage.” She stared up at him in growing horror, as the impact of his sacrifice began to dawn on her. “I gave it to you because I know how important that painting is to you. For God’s sake, we had our first fight over it—”

  “So it’d be stupid to have another fight over it. Yeah, this painting is important to me. It means more to me than anything I own. No one’s ever given me a gift like this, and in its own way it means as much to me as the air in my lungs. But I know how important this auction is to you. When you painted this, you were trying to put how I made you feel onto canvas, and I love that. But you were also trying to create something for this auction, something so good it’ll bring in some serious cash to help a lot of people, and I love that, too. No way in hell am I putting a foot through that hope. Not when I have the power to make that hope a reality.”

  “But…” So utterly moved by his selfless gesture, she couldn’t help but shake her head at what he was willing to give up just for her. “Sage, I gave this painting to you. My art has never meant that much to anyone outside my tattoo clientele, so I was proud you wanted Darkness, Vanquished. Prouder still that you understood its meaning. I know it means something to you. I don’t want you to lose it in the auction.”

  “Yeah, Darkness, Vanquished means something to me, but you mean everything to me. Come to find out there’s one hell of a difference in that distinction.”

  That stopped her cold as the words slowly sank in. “Did you just say that I mean everything to you?”

  He nodded, watching her so intently it was as if he was trying to compel her to read his mind. “Don’t forget who I am to you. I’m the man who lives to chase away your darkness. That’s what I need to do now. A darkness created by your father, yeah, but also created by me. I need to show you there’s nothing I won’t do to bring the light back into your world.”

  Oh God. “You’re sacrificing so much.”

  “Before you came along, I never knew what peace was. Now I do. I can be at peace as long as I know you don’t have a single worry darkening your skies. When you’re happy and at peace, that’s what my world becomes. So if you look at it that way, it's not a sacrifice at all. It's just you and me being there for each other when we need it the most. That's who we are, Skittish, whether you’re ready to believe that or not. That's who we'll always be.”

  “Sage.” A huff of breath escaped her, which was impressive, considering his words choked her up. “Always is a long time.”

  “You got a point you’re trying to make?”

  She shook her head. “I'm just… blown away, I guess. Everything about you has always blown me away.”

  “Good.” He closed in to nuzzle her nose with his before kissing her lightly. “I like to keep you guessing.”

  A rocky huff of laughter escaped her. “I don't even know how to begin to pay you back for this, but I do know one thing—you are not losing this painting. I'm bidding on Darkness, Vanquished like my life depends on it.”

  “No, you're not.” At that, he pulled her none too gently against him, and when she glanced in surprise up to his face, she was met with a fierce scowl. “This is your painting, with your name on it right there. You can't bid on your own artwork.”

  Her gaze flicked to the nameplate. “Why? Is it like bad optics, or something? I don't remember Scout saying it was against the rules to bid on your own work.”

  “I don't give a shit if it breaks House rules or not. I'm the one telling you that you are not bidding on your own fucking work. I won't allow it.”

  “Sage—”

  “I didn't submit this work just so you could go bankrupt on it, you hear me?”

  She couldn't help but scoff. “I doubt it's going to go for so much it breaks my personal bank.”

  “That's your shitheel old man talking, and I'm not having it. I fully expect this painting of yours to go for some big bucks. So big I had Payne put a bidding cap on it, and to make damn sure that my bid is the last bid on it.”

  She gaped at him. “You’re going to bid on a painting you already own? Are you crazy?”

  “You may have given it to me, but it’s your painting, and when the whole world sees it later on tonight, they’ll see your greatness. Call me crazy all you want, but the fact is I’m the man who inspires all that greatness, and I don’t mind letting the whole world know it.”

  “Sage, you don’t have to do this.”

  “The hell I don't. You're my woman. I'm your man. In case you’ve forgotten what that means, all you have to do is look at that painting.” He tilted his head toward Darkness, Vanquished, all the while keeping his gaze focused on her. “You showed me through this painting what love is, Daniels. How it can bring light into all the dark places—not just in the person you love, but in your own life as well. I think that's what makes this love shit is so damn addictive. Love makes a person’s world better. You've made my world better, anyway, so believe me when I say I will go through fucking anything when it comes to you.”

  “Wait.” Everything went still inside her. Even the world seemed to hold its breath. “What you just described… Love makes a person’s world better. That’s exactly how love is.”

  He lifted a brow. “Yeah, I know, Skittish. That’s why I said it.”

  “But you described it. You described love.”

  “Yeah, I did.”

  “And you’re willing to give up Darkness, Vanquished for me, when I know you love it,” she added on a gasp, putting the pieces together at last.

  And what a picture those pieces made.

  “I love Darkness, Vanquished because I love you,” he said, looking right into her eyes. “You painted it out of love for me. That’s what this painting is. It’s our love.”

  “But you get it,” she all but yelled in his face. “You just described how love works, and you understand what Darkness, Vanquished is because… Oh my God, you love me, don’t you?”

  He looked heavenward. “She’s finally getting it. Thank fucking Christ.”

  “You love me.” A happy sob burst out of her before she could stop it. Then she sniffed most inelegantly and almost burst out laughing at his expression torn between vexation and relief. “You love me, Sage.”

  “Yeah, Mads Daniels, my Skittish.” He framed her face in his hands and kissed her with breathless tenderness. “I love you, so much it’s like I can barely breathe.”

  “If this is a dream, I don’t want to ever wake up.” Any second now she was going to faint, but she didn’t care. The most perfect man in the world loved her. “I feel like I’ve been waiting for this moment forever.”

  “You were right about my timing.” His grimace was a masterpiece of self-deprecation. “Remember when I told you about my old man telling me he’d just assumed I’d figure out we were family by the way he treated me? I did the same damn thing with you,” he said bitterly when she nodded. “By not being straight-up about my feelings, I made you doubt me. I made you think I doubted you. You never would have thought I’d lose faith in you if I’d just told you that I loved you. For that alone, I’ll never forgive myself. I gave you pain, and I can’t stand that.”

  “I forgive you,” she whispered, putting that last little hurt to bed once and for all. “Just promise me
you’ll never forget to tell me how you’re feeling, because I need to know.”

  He took a deep breath. “I get that, and I’ll work on opening up, because all I care about is making you happy. So if that’s what you want, that’s what you’ll get.”

  Aw. “Thank you.”

  “And I may not be a big fan when it comes to talking out my feelings, but when it comes to showing how I'm all in with you, I'm a fucking pro. Or did you not even wonder why I wanted you to move in with me?”

  “Sex.” Then she gave it some thought. “Great sex.” She thought about it some more. “Seriously great sex.”

  “Not even the greatest sex on earth can compel a man to share his personal kingdom with someone else, unless he's found that one woman he wants as his queen. You’re my queen because… well. You know.”

  “Because you love me.” Giddy joy bloomed in every cell, and she looked again at the painting. Now more than ever, it was a true depiction of everything he made her feel. “Wow.”

  “Wow?”

  “Yeah, wow.” With a laugh she rolled up on her tiptoes and kissed him soundly. “Hands down, your love is the best birthday present I’ve ever received.”

  “You had it long before tonight. It's what motivated me to donate Darkness, Vanquished, another move that I thought would’ve made it kinda obvious how I feel,” he added dryly, giving her a quick squeeze. “It's also what made me buy… this.”

  When he reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring, she wondered for a moment if she was having a momentary break with reality. “Holy shit.”

  “Not exactly the response I’d imagined, but whatever. It’s not that big of a leap,” he went on when she simply stared, unmoving, at the ring. “It’s just the obvious next step. We work together, we’re in the process of figuring out how to live together, and we both know we belong together. It’s not a big leap,” he said again, taking her left hand to slip the ring in place. “It’s just the next step.”