“No, really, I want to know.” Melanie looked at him over her towering cup of soda. Hudson’s Burgers had large portions. “I’m curious.”

“It’s not something you need to worry about,” Luciano replied. He munched on a fry pensively. “Dunno why you’re asking.”

“Because it’s important for me to know.”

“Why?”

“Because…” Melanie puckered her lips, searching for an excuse. “Because I want to get to know more about you. I know about who you’ve been for the past two years—an artist, a traveler, and an all-around good guy—but there’s got to be more. Who were you before that? What were your younger years like?”

“Says the woman who’s been dodging mention of her childhood at every chance she gets.” Luciano twisted around on his stool to look at her directly. They were stopping for lunch. It was another day as usual at Thorn Tattoo. The anniversary of Cassandra’s death was in just a few days, but as far as Melanie could see, Luciano was pleasantly distracted.

That he was distracted with her only made her feel more pleased.

“So what? You want me to spill about who I was?” Melanie asked. “This isn’t a trade.”

Luciano sat up straighter, seeming to like that idea. “I want to make it a trade,” he insisted. “I’ve been asking about you way longer than you’ve been asking about me.”

Melanie’s face soured playfully. She crossed her arms over her chest. Since they’d kissed, Luciano had been happier and eager to spend time with her. Melanie enjoyed the attention. “I’ll tell you, but you have to promise that you’ll return the favor.”

“Mmhm, I promise that you’ll know all about who I was if you tell me about who you were. The suspense has been killing me.”

“You’re going to be so disappointed. You worked it up in your head as this big thing, but the reality is so much more boring than that. I’m not really all that interesting.” Melanie drummed her hands on the table. “But if you insist… where should I start?”

“At the beginning,” Luciano insisted. “That’s where every story should start, shouldn’t it?”

Melanie’s college English classes taught her otherwise, but she didn’t bring it up. The beginning was as fine a place as any to start. It wasn’t like there was a whole lot of ‘middle’ to cover. “My parents are good people who follow a different lifestyle than the one I adhere to,” Melanie said.

“Nice and cryptic. What does that mean?” As she spoke, Luciano ate. Melanie wasn’t all that hungry anyway, so she didn’t mind letting her lunch get cold. She’d reheat it for dinner in her hotel’s microwave.

“It means that since their early teenage years, my parents decided that living free off the land was what they wanted from life. They were really into all the hippie stuff you see exaggerated on TV; you know, flower crowns, bell bottoms, open vests, vegan diets… so that’s what I was born into.”

“And your name is Melanie Noel?” Luciano arched a brow in disbelief. “Your parents were the worst hippies ever.”

“That…” Melanie shook her head and sighed. How did he know? “That’s not actually my birth name. I had my name changed as soon as I turned eighteen.”

“Oh, my god.” Luciano grinned and leaned across the desk, eyes sparkling with mischief. “You’ve got to tell me what your real name is.”

“My real name is Melanie Noel,” she said stiffly. She stuck out her tongue. “If you call me anything other than that, I’m not going to respond to you. But my birth name is… ugh.”

“Spill it!”

“Moon Star.”

“Moon Star!” Luciano crowed with laughter. “Okay, I take that back. Your parents are the best hippies ever.”

Melanie scowled. “It’s not fair to make fun of them. They thought it was a beautiful, serene name. Calm and limitless like the night sky.”

“No wonder why you’re so awkward,” Luciano said with a wink. “You’re out of this world.”

“Oh, my god.” Melanie cradled her face in her hands. “Are you serious? You are forbidden from speaking about this in public, you know. Absolutely forbidden. I’m Melanie.”

Despite her protest, she couldn’t help but feel a twinge of satisfaction at his compliment and the attention he gave her. Coming clean about her past was a big step forward for her, and she hoped that one day Luciano would appreciate it. After all the growing he’d done since they’d returned to Vegas, she felt it was about time she opened up as well.

“Right. Right.” Luciano stifled the last of his laughter and pulled himself together. “So what else?”

“My parents never stayed in one place for long. My dad owned a big van with the back seats gutted so we could live in it, and we traveled up and down the west coast, sometimes living on our own, but often settling in with communes. I learned all kinds of things most kids wouldn’t get to know, but at the same time, I attended public school and got an education like any other kid would. All of the other kids used to make fun of me and my younger sister because of our lifestyles. I hated it and wanted to be like them, but my sister never got the appeal of modern life. When she turned seventeen, she married her boyfriend from the commune we were living in at the time, and they had their first child right before she graduated from high school.”

“Shit.” Luciano pressed his lips together, masking his emotions from her. “Is she happy?”

“Mmhm. And she’s happier every day. They’re still together. They have an army of children now. I haven’t seen any of my family since we went on the road, and it’s hard to get in touch with them for obvious reasons.”

“I can’t even imagine that,” Luciano said with a shake of his head. “Born and raised in Vegas. I think my father snuck me in to my first casino when I was thirteen. He taught all three of us to be card sharks. If tattooing wasn’t in the cards for me, I would have become a professional poker player, no questions asked.”

“Are you serious?” Melanie blinked in surprise. They’d never gambled while on the road, and she’d never heard Luciano so much as mention cards before. “I didn’t peg you for that kind of guy.”

“I’m savage.” Luciano lifted his chin proudly. “Back in the day, I was unstoppable—the kind of guy you didn’t want sitting at your table. Not only do I know how to play well, but I also know how to play smart. Some people are too proud to fold when they need to. I know how to work the game to my advantage. It’s how I paid off the house in full.”

“You won five-hundred-thousand dollars playing poker?” Melanie stared at him, eyes wide. She fiddled with the arm of her glasses, unable to believe what he was telling her. There was no way.

“Back when I bought it, it was two-hundred-thousand, but you get the point.” Luciano shrugged. “Mind you, this was over a couple years, while Cassandra and I were dating. It’s not like I walked into the casino one night and laid down a hundred grand.”

It was the kind of money Melanie could only dream of. She’d been putting generous portions of her salary into savings in anticipation of buying a house, but she wasn’t sure she was ready for that expense yet. Seeing Luciano’s property go up on the market tempted her. The house was cute, and while it was a little big for only her, she liked to think that one day she’d have a family to fill it.

“So that’s what you did before you tattooed full time?” Melanie asked. “Why would you stop gambling if you were that good at it?”

“Because the casinos kicked me out.” Luciano smirked. “Turns out if you get too good, they don’t like to keep you around. I mean, I could have kept doing it. I could have flown out to Atlantic City a few times a year and chased huge payloads, but… I like tattooing more. My mom was forever fighting with the school every time I played hooky because if I wasn’t sneaking into casinos, I was training in the shop.”

“So you grew up in Thorn Tattoo?”

“Nah. I thought I could do better. I lied about my name and my age, so I could get an apprenticeship at a shop off the strip. That way, I didn’t compete with my dad or my brother and I was good. Everyone I tattooed was impressed. When dad died and Antonio took over, he brought me on as head artist, and that’s when I started to get real recognition. Fame. You don’t get that while gambling. There are hot women on your arms, and gold diggers lining up for you, but nationwide fame? That’s something different.”

While she’d been tending to vegetable gardens and helping weave jewelry to sell, Luciano had been making his fortune surrounded by splendor. They were from such different worlds that Melanie was taken aback. “And you like fame better?”

“Nope.” Luciano laughed. “But it’s a good life. I love art. I love putting my art on people and knowing it’ll last their whole lives. I love seeing myself in magazines, and getting deals with companies, and collaborating on new inks or needles or whatever the fuck else.”

What a blessed life he’d led. Melanie looked on Luciano with new appreciation. He might not have gone to college, or chased success in the standard way, but he’d made a name for himself. He’d padded his bank account, followed his heart, and lived life to the fullest.

It was more tragic to Melanie than ever that he’d thrown that all away after Cassandra’s death. If he’d stayed in one place, and if he’d been brave enough to face his grief, there was no telling the things he could have accomplished. How many years had he squandered running?

Melanie reached out and set her hand on his knee, and Luciano’s gaze locked on hers. Understanding arced between them, sudden and vibrant like lightning, and filled her soul with tingling bliss. There was hurt there, but she was helping him out of it. He understood and appreciated her. He let her in.

Try as she might to deny it, Melanie knew that she was falling for him. She’d been falling for years, but now that the barriers of her heart were down….

“What about outside of professional matters?” Melanie asked. She’d been pestering Luciano with questions about his life all day. Now that he was finally answering them, she wasn’t going to let up. “What did you used to do for fun? I feel like we know each other so well, and yet not that well at all.”

Luciano’s eyes lit up. “You want to know what I used to do for fun?”

“Yup.” Melanie replied.

“Then I’ll show you. Go home early and change into something fun and hot and then meet me back here. I’m taking you out on the town.”

Melanie blushed. She sank back into her chair and sipped nervously at the straw of her drink. As excited as she was to go out with the man she’d been attracted to since forever, she couldn’t help but feel like she was getting in way over her head.

* * *

There was a silver dress Melanie owned that she’d never had the chance to wear. Back in her last year of college, she’d bought it to wear out with her then-boyfriend, Lincoln. Things hadn’t worked out between them, and the dress had gone into her closet before she’d had a chance to wear it. Then, it had been tucked in the bottom of her luggage and traveled with her around the US.

For the first time since the changing room, Melanie slipped into it. It still fit like a glove, and she was glad to see that her figure hadn’t changed that much over the years. She did her best to eat healthy when she could, but being on the road made that difficult. Appealing to Luciano’s tastes at the same time made that harder. He wasn’t exactly the type of guy who’d choose salad over other options.

Melanie turned back and forth in front of the mirror in her hotel room. The dress fell to the right place on her thighs, and with her brown hair down and wavy, she looked sexy.

It wasn’t often that Melanie considered herself anything other than cute or dorky.

Curiously, she took off her thick framed glasses and examined herself. Without her glasses, she couldn’t see. Sometimes she went without them if she knew she wasn’t going to drive, read, or watch anything—but tonight she wasn’t sure what was happening. Her face looked nude without them. With a little sigh, she put them back on. She’d never be a sultry temptress, but it seemed Luciano liked her, anyway. That was all that mattered.

Once every aspect of her appearance was checked and found up to her standards, she took her clutch and left the hotel. The drive back to the studio took a little while, and by the time she reached Thorn Tattoo’s front doors, Luciano was already waiting outside for her. The shop was closed. Everyone had gone home.

He’d changed into a spare set of clothes she had never seen him wear before.

The collared shirt he wore was respectable, but the top few buttons were undone to reveal his tattoos and muscular chest. He wore slacks instead of jeans. Under most circumstances, she would have called what he wore professional—but so late at night, with his top buttons undone and his body displayed in such a stunning way….

“You look amazing.” Luciano whistled low under his breath as he approached, his tone sincere.

“I could say the same for you.” Melanie stopped in front of him, looking him over. “I didn’t know you kept a spare set of clothes at the shop.”

“There are many things about me you don’t know,” Luciano said with a wink. “Now let’s expose some of them. Are you ready for a night of fun like you’ve never experienced before?”

“I don’t know,” Melanie admitted nervously. She’d never partied before, and although she wasn’t sure that was what they were about to do, she had a strong inkling that it was. “I’m not sure what to expect.”

“Getting tipsy. Laughter. Loud music. Sweat. And memories you’ll either never forget, or never remember.” Luciano grinned. He took her by the hand. “So let’s get to it. You wanted to know who I was, and now I’m going to show you. It’s time to cut loose and have some fun Vegas style.”