Chapter Ten

Hunter

I pull open the door of the tattoo shop and lock eyes with the receptionist, Eve, who offers me a distasteful scowl. For the life of me, I can’t quite figure out why there is so much bad blood between the two of us, especially because this is only our second meeting.

“Good afternoon, stranger,” I say with a forced grin.

“She’s back there.” She points toward the black curtain behind her with her thumb. “She’s hard to miss, so you shouldn’t need any assistance.” She lowers her gaze back to the countertop, lost in a thick paperback book.

“Self-help?” I question with a smirk, peeking over her shoulder as I make my way around the desk. “Ah, Romance.” I nod, seeing the book cover with a hunky naked hero wielding a guitar.

She rolls her eyes and closes the book before turning to confront me, but by the time she’s done so, I’m already through the black curtains.

The first thing I see is Dani walking toward the back of the shop and disappearing behind the opposite set of black curtains. To my left, Rob is working on some guy’s back. To the right, past Dani’s work area, is a man with short green hair and gauges the size of quarters in either ear.

I pace toward the back of the room, toward the curtains, acting nonchalant as if I have every right to be here. To my surprise, green-haired guy doesn’t ask me who I am and Rob doesn’t put me in a headlock. I enter a short hallway, with a back door, a restroom on the left, and two doors on the right. I choose door number one, the door closest to me and press my palm against it, but before I can push it open, it swings open and out comes Dani.

She screams and drops a box of gloves onto the concrete floor. “What the hell are you doing here?”

I bend down and swipe the box of gloves off the floor and push it back into her hands. “You know, I never would have pegged you as the type of girl to get scared so easily.”

“And I never pegged you for a guy who’d skulk around a tattoo shop. You’re not supposed to be back here!”

“Why?” I lean against the wall. “Boss might get mad?”

“The health department might have something to say about it.” She combs her free hand through her hair. Her highlights look brighter, more vibrant than before.

I shrug, then reach out and tug on a strand of her pink hair. “You did something to your hair.”

She places the box of gloves on a cart and hooks her finger at me. “If we’re going to have a conversation, we’re not going to do it here.”

She leads me toward the back exit, pushes the door open and I’m hit with a gust of wind. She kicks a rock to wedge it between the frame and the door as we step into the gravel lot behind the shop.

“Is that your bike?” I point toward a Harley parked beside an old school Volkswagen van.

She cranes her head over her shoulder and offers a warm smile at the hog. “Yep,” she sighs a hearty sigh. “That’s my baby.”

“Interesting. You never purr at me like that.”

“That’s because I love her, and I’m only just starting to be fond of you.” Her eyes widen. “I mean—”

“Too late. You’re fond of me. You said it yourself.”

She rolls her eyes but I can tell she’s flustered by what she said. By how I might take it. And I admit, I take it well, meaning I like the idea of her liking me. Too much.

“What do you want, Hunter?”

“To talk. Your brother and I had our meeting today.”

She nods. “And how did that go?”

“I’d say very well given he’s all signed up to go pro.”

Her eyes almost pop out of her head. “Uh—what?”

“You heard me.”

She scowls and narrows her eyes. She wants to kill me, wants to stab me right in the eyeball. I’m kidding of course, but her reaction only makes me want to tease her more. “Really, it took no time for him to sign. I think his name was scribbled across that dotted line within five minutes of him sitting down.”

“What did I tell you, Hunter?” Her voice drops to a low growl, almost as if the same gravel crunching beneath our feet has found its way into her throat. She stalks up to me, and with each step she takes, I take one step back until my back is pressed against the exterior of the shop.

“Let’s see. It’s his decision to make and I’m going to support that, but I’m also going to be on your ass like fried rice. Or something like that. Were you not being honest?”

She presses her body against mine, but not in a sexual way. More in a This is the part where you either beg for your life, or you die kind of way. And I want to beg alright. Beg her to throw me down and fuck me right here and now. But first…

I grin and place my hands on her luscious hips. “Easy there, Killer. I was kidding.”

“You’re such an asshole.” But she actually says it with a huge smile, like she can’t help herself. Before she can step back, I wrap my arms around her waist and hug her.  

“At least you didn’t punch me. I think that means we’re making progress.”

“Or it means I’m on the job and can’t get physical.”

“I think it means you’re a little fonder of me than you want to admit.”

She snorts, but doesn’t deny it outright, which makes me want to hug her tighter.

So of course I let go.

“Anyway, your brother said he needs more time to think about it, and that’s fine with me. It wouldn’t be in anyone’s best interest to rush him. Now, how about we move on to other concerns. Namely, yours and mine and the fact I owe you something.”

Her brows furrow. “What?” Then her eyes widen when she gets my meaning. She just shakes her head and laughs. “Poor baby. Your pride must be bruised for you to be so focused on that.”

“Baby, you have no idea. Now, you live around here?”

She bites her lip, then finally says, “Above the shop.”

I simply grin.