Riley’s hand trembled as she closed the office door. Talking about what had happened with Amanda was still difficult, her heart broke when she thought about how little time they were able to spend together before she died. Riley blinked away tears and headed down the hall, past the tattoo bay, and to the front desk. Ben was helping Mitch square away the cost of his tattoo, and Riley fell silently into place at his side as he worked.

“Hey,” Mitch said. “I’m glad you came out. I wanted to thank you again for the work you did. This bad boy is going to be worn loud and proud for the rest of my life. Do you have a card or something with your contact info I can offer people who ask about your work?”

Flashbacks of the time she’d spent in Amanda’s shop flooded back. Once she’d gotten her chops with the tattoo machine, people had started to ask similar questions. Riley pursed her lips and stared at the desk. “I’m sorry. I don’t have any information. I’m not a regular tattoo artist at this shop.”

“Then where are you a regular?” Mitch asked. He passed his credit card over to Ben, and Ben ran it through the processor. “I just got this done, but I’m already thinking about my next piece. I think I want a full back piece done, and I want you to do it. I dig your style.”

Startled, Riley looked up from the desk. Doing a tattoo on the bicep was one thing, but an entire back piece? Something like that could run into thirty-six hours of work, if not more, depending on what kind of style and detail he was looking for. With the right rates, it was long pieces like the kind Mitch wanted that would keep Thorn Tattoo afloat.

“I’m um, well, I’m not really a regular anywhere, to be honest. I work in the office here.”

“Don’t let her fool you,” Ben said as he passed the card back to Mitch and handed him one of the shop business cards. “She hid herself in the office for the last month, pretending to know jack-shit about art, and then she blows us all out of the water by executing flawless, skillful tattoos. She might work in the office, but she belongs on the floor. Pretty sure the boss is looking to get her working out here, and if that happens, she’ll have plenty of her own business cards.”

Riley’s mouth went dry, and she struggled to find the words to say to shoot Ben down. Dealing with walk-ins and helping when the shop was desperate was one thing, but she didn’t feel comfortable enough with her skill level to do anything more.

“Guess I’ll have to come back, then,” Mitch said, kissing the business card before tucking it in his wallet. He nodded to Riley. “Thanks for the awesome tat. I’ll be in the area again. Once you start working the floor, remember that I’ll be back to book you for a back piece. It’s going to be epic.”

“R-right,” Riley stammered. “Thanks for being such an amazing client. I’ll see you again later.”

Mitch left, and Riley and Ben both watched as he climbed the stairs to the front door and exited the shop. Ben shook his head. “Man, that tattoo was bad-ass. Even beneath the wrapping it looks fantastic.”

“Thanks,” Riley mumbled. Every instance of praise bolstered her confidence, but she couldn’t help but feel nervous. As much as she loved art, her father’s rejection of her skill had crushed her. “I’m not sure I’m going to be tattooing, though.”

“What?” Ben frowned. “That’s bullshit. You’re good! Better than I’ll ever be, if Gio ever lets me apprentice.”

“It’s just not something I feel comfortable with,” Riley said with a shrug. “I don’t feel like I’m a good fit.”

“Well, whatever you want, I guess,” Ben said, voice downcast. “I think you’re talented and that it’s a waste not to put that talent to use, but who am I to say anything? You do you. That’s the most important part.”

Riley nodded, but her heart wasn’t in it. The thought of spending the rest of her life crunching numbers and putting together plans for success after she’d had a taste of tattooing again felt hollow. Riley’s heart had never strayed from tattooing and Amanda’s death was part of the reason why she’d moved so far to take on work. Honoring Amanda and helping others create art had been the plan, but now that there was a chance she could take things a step further….

There was a lot to think about.

Riley stepped out from behind the desk, absentmindedly checked on the supplies in the display cases, then headed toward the back of the store to check on their autoclave and start some casual cleanup. Before she could make it to the back room, Mal came out from his tattoo bay, sketchbook in hand.

“Riley,” he said brightly. “Just who I wanted to see. Love the heels, ‘cuz they let me know you’re coming. Never change.”

Riley came to a stop, looking between Mal and the sketchbook. “I don’t intend to. Um. What is it that I can help you with?”

“I wanted you to take a look at this sketch,” Mal said casually. “You’re Irish, right? Or at least partially Irish? I figured maybe you had some experience in Celtic knot tattoos. My client wants to get this Celtic knot cross done, and I was wondering if I was on the right track.” Mal handed her his sketchbook, open to his current project. Hesitantly, Riley looked down at it. She had some experience with Celtic tattoos, but not tons. Most of her knowledge was theoretical. She knew the fundamentals of all the most popular ones, but the finer details were often lost on her.

Mal’s design, as far as she could tell, was solid. The lines were even, the interlocking loops connected, and there was real attention to detail, even in the busiest places. He’d woven in client-specific elements without disrupting the flow of the knotting, and the spacing looked even.

“Are you going for black and white or color?” Riley asked.

“Color,” Mal said. “He wants kind of subdued, natural colors, which I’m cool with. I think I’ll need to pay attention to shading and skin breaks to make something like that pop, though, if all the colors are complementary. What do you think?”

He was asking her for advice, Riley realized. It felt so strange that a professional would be coming to her for help. She didn’t think she was that good.

Now, after Giovanni and Ben and Mal had said otherwise, she was starting to believe she was mistaken.

Her hands tightened on the sketchbook and she stared at the design, imagining how she’d color it. Vibrant greens, yellows, and blues. If he wanted subdued colors, careful shading would be necessary. The design could be simple and beautiful at the same time.

“Make sure you’re bringing in a strong light source,” she said. “It’s going to be essential to making sure you get that contrast in. I’d put some yellow in with your green to make it pop, and see what he thinks about blue. I know blue is not the best color to work with, but….”

“No, it’s cool. I really appreciate it.” Mal grinned. “Thanks, Riley. So the design itself is good?”

“If you can translate what you’ve got on paper onto someone’s body, it’s great.” She smiled. “Good work.”

“Awesome.” Mal’s grin grew. “Gonna draw up the transfer, then. Thanks again for your help. I really appreciate it.”

Mal returned to his room and Riley went on her way. The solitude in the back room with the quiet hum of the autoclave gave her the space to think.

There was a lot she suddenly needed to reevaluate about her life, and the only way she was going to get it done was if she had some peace and quiet to think. She wanted to believe that Giovanni was only being so nice to her because he was interested in bringing her back to bed, but with Ben and Mal chiming in about her prowess, she couldn’t keep believing that was his only reason.

Giovanni was a good guy, and he was trying to do what was best for her, she realized. In his own quiet ways, he was playing his cards to try to set her up for success.

Riley’s mind drifted to the queen of hearts on his thigh, and she blushed.

Thorn Tattoo wasn’t the work experience she’d been expecting, but the more time went on, she realized that it might just be the life experience she so desperately needed.