It was a distinct possibility that Jack didn’t know real pain until he felt the bite of those needles into his raw flesh for a second night in a row.

He showed up late to his appointment, thanks to Lion, but Luna was still there waiting. He refused to acknowledge the hopeful spark that flashed in her eyes when she’d opened the back door to his quiet knock. Had she waited for him or just for his business? Because he was paying her well or because she truly wanted to?

It wasn’t worth considering, especially not after his impromptu meeting with Lion. If Jack ever doubted he was bad news before, he knew now with certainty that he had to stay away from Luna.

Her hands, gloved up, had applied something cooling to the roaring burn of his back before she even started tattooing. Numbing gel or something, Jack figured.

Luna stayed pretty quiet and the pain knocked the words right out of Jack’s lungs. Not that he wanted to talk. No, what he wanted, irrational as it was, was to put a guy on Luna. Someone to watch her, a professional. He had lots of money. Finding some kind of undercover guard wouldn’t be hard.

Jack didn’t fully understand the protective urge that surged inside his chest. He just knew that after Lion had uttered that creepy statement about wanting Jack’s soul, the guy had slid out of the booth like a puddle of grease and left as silently as he’d appeared, disappearing into shadow.

“Do you want to sit up for a bit? I mean, would that be alright? I set the chair up as well. You could lean against it. Just for some of the shading it might help me to be at a different angle.”

Jack ground his teeth so hard his jaw ached. They’d been at this for what? An hour? Two? Three? He’d lost all track of time. “Yah…” That wasn’t his voice, thick and hoarse, was it?

Luna lifted the gun away and the buzzing stopped altogether a minute later. Jack propped himself up on one elbow, pushed and with a grunt, managed to get halfway up on the table. The world titled dangerously around him as blackness closed in at the corners of his eyes. He gripped the edge, his fingers curling into the hard metal and soft cushioning. Jack tried a breath and found his lungs actually expanded. Just one more and another and another and the blackness should hopefully clear.

“You alright?”

He turned towards Luna’s voice even though he couldn’t bring her face into focus. “Yah. Just… need a second…”

The touch of cool rubber glove on his shoulder, the burn of her hand just below that thin layer, sent a shockwave zinging straight through Jack. He waited, waited for the panic to set in but whatever was going on with him at the moment must have cancelled it out because it never came.

“Did you eat today?”

“Eat?” He said, numbly. It took a lot of effort to get that one word out.

“Yes. Eat.” Luna’s face swam into view. The knot between her brows revealed just how concerned she was.

“No,” Jack muttered. Damn it. He had been going to before Lion showed his ugly mug. Their meeting had taken up too much time. He’d never had a chance to grab anything.

“That’s it. We’re done for the night then.”

“What? No. I’m good to go.” He realized his words were slurring, like he was drunk. The black spots returned and he gripped the table hard, almost afraid he would fall off.

“You’re not. You can’t go through pain like this with no calories to burn.”

“Order pizza then.”

“What?”

“Order pizza.” His words were slurred but he made an attempt at humour. “I’ve only been here, what? A couple hours? We need to keep going. Do more.”

Luna’s gloved hands rested on her hips in a rigid stance that made her look fierce. Like a warrior woman set to do battle. I am fucking ridiculous. Jack realized it and knew it full well but he couldn’t erase the image from his mind. Luna in some jungle setting, wearing leather like clothing, half clad…

He gave his head a shake because suddenly his body was doing strange things. Heating up. Heart hammering behind ribs in a chest that felt closed in. His cock was so hard it nearly drilled through his jeans. It must be pretty fucking obvious and he hoped Luna’s eyes didn’t glance in that direction.

“You’ve been here for nearly five hours. I’m calling it a night. Because you need to eat and you need to take time to heal. You’re not a machine. If I tear you up any more than this, that tattoo is not going to heal right. It’s going to scab up and maybe even scar.”

“Yah….”

Luna’s hands dropped back to her sides at his capitulation. Those gorgeous green eyes took on an uncertain sheen. The regret was already heavy there and she hadn’t even asked the impending question he could tell was on her lips.

“I’m a vegan,” she said softly. Softer than her voice had ever been. “It’s nearly two in the morning. There isn’t anything open this late that I would consider eating even if I ate junk. Which I don’t. Do you… uh… want to get something?”

Say no. Say no, you fool. You’re no good for her. Not now. Not ever. Don’t taint her life by entering it. She doesn’t need more trouble or heartbreak than she’s already probably had. “I thought you said there wasn’t anything open.” Damn it! Damn it to hell!

“I did. I mean, do you want to come over? To my house? I can make us something?”

“I…” No. No is the only correct answer here. “Yes. I would like that.”

“Okay…” A strange, awkward silence, heavy and filled with the expectation of what was to come, settled into the room. “I just have to clean up here,” Luna finally whispered. She busied herself flying around the room, making quick work of putting away and tidying. She disappeared a couple times, probably to take care of whatever sterilization her machines needed.

Jack sat on that table edge, barely holding it together. He’d really agreed. To go to her house. It was the last thing on earth he should ever have done. He was sure of only one thing at that point and it was the fact that come morning, Luna was going to have a security detail on her even if it cost him every single cent he had.