The Unexpected First (The Unexpected Series Book 2)

Chapter Nine

His arms wrap tightly around me, giving me a sense of safety and contentment I’ve never felt before.The people I dated since he left could never have me feeling this way. Yet, I’m supposed to be comforting him. I melt into his embrace, losing myself in the what-ifs his scent elicits. The sandalwood and juniper that are distinctly Grey meld together, reminding me that I”ve never been able to quite match his signature smell, no matter how many candles and lotions I”ve bought. I pull away before I can sink any deeper into the memories he stirs inside me.

“Grey.” My voice is merely a whisper. “Let”s finish this room tomorrow. We can work on the kitchen, instead.

I grab his hand, linking our fingers, and his lips twitch into a smirk at the intimate connection. I lead him out to the kitchen, and we start working together silently. We clear out a lot of items, things his dad held onto after his mom’s death, plus things he accumulated in the years since. Grey does insist that we keep a few things, like his mom’s Kitchen Aid mixer and a random cake pan, but everything else will be donated. It really makes my job easy and we have everything packed within the hour. I order lunch when we are done and continue into the living room with him while we wait for our food.

“Have you decided what you’re getting?” Grey’s voice breaks through the sounds of Disturbed’s“You’re Mine”coming from the Bluetooth speaker.

“What I’m getting?” I stop what I’m doing to turn to him, raising a brow.

“Ink. When I take care of Hellion and Pickle.” He chuckles at Pickle’s nickname.

“I wasn’t planning on getting anything. I thought it was just for them.” I stutter.

The truth is, I’d been thinking about getting a tattoo for a long time, but just couldn’t bring myself to take the leap. There’s only one person I trust to alter my body in such a permanent way, and now, he’s standing before me, asking for a chance to do exactly that.

“Of course not, whatever you want. You got it.” His smile is sweet as he raises his hand to graze my cheek, brushing a strand of hair from my eyes and tucking it behind my ear.

“Ok.” I respond without giving an actual answer. I’m not quite sure how to tell him why I’ve waited, but I know it’s going to come up when I tell him what I want.

Thursday morning has come so quickly that I’m scrambling to get my gear in the car. My client requested multiple locations, so I’m meeting them at the first one. Hopping out of my Jeep, I walk up to find a beautiful human with long dark hair and a slim figure; however, all her beauty disappears the moment she turns around, and I see that it’s Raven, Grey’s high school girlfriend. This woman made my life a living hell in high school whenever the opportunity arose. It should be illegal that she’s as gorgeous as she is. Raven’s been going from man to man since they graduated and Grey left, making sure that the next one she ends up with has more money than the last.

Fucking gold digger.

“Raven, I didn’t realize you were the one who was scheduled today.” I stare at her, my expression blank. I’ve become a pro at masking my distaste for people since I have to communicate with some vain specimens on a fairly regular basis due to my profession.

“Oh, Ry, don’t worry, sweetheart. It will be fun.” Her fake giggle makes all the more sense when an older man in a Gucci suit appears from the other side of the Bently she is leaning against. “My man wants to get some fun shots of me, and I knew you would be perfect for what we were looking to do!”

“You’re wanting to do a boudoir shoot? And you thought I’d be the best person to do that for you?” I deadpan.

“Of course! You’re like my little sister! Remember I used to date your brother’s best friend, babe!”

I choke on a laugh. “No, babe. What I remember is you making my and my best friend”s lives a living hell because you thought we were pathetic,” I snarl at her. “So, babe. I kindly will be canceling the contract for this shoot since you obviously knew I wouldn’t be interested, seeing as you put down your boyfriend”s name on the form.”

I turn on my heel and climb back into my car, taking just a moment to breathe before speeding out of the lot. I’m so angry at Raven for trying to manipulate me into doing something for her that I don’t realize I’ve already made it to Mud House, driving on autopilot. Smart, Ryan, real smart. I pull out my phone and send a text to the girls.

Ryan

You’ll never guess who tried to pull one over on me and get me to do a damn boudoir shoot.

Hadley

Was it Grey? Because that would be hot.

Pickle

Oh, tell me you saw his junk. Is he packing?

Ryan

It was fucking Raven! She put her boyfriend”s name down for the contract.

Hadley

Oh shit, where are you?

Ryan

Mud House. I just got here.

Pickle

I’m leaving the gym now, I’ll pick up Hadley on the way.

I love my friends. We will drop whatever we’re doing to be there for one another at a moment’s notice, and I couldn’t imagine my life without them.

I walk into the coffee shop and order my drink from Jill, the manager of this location. Kayleigh is usually only here a couple of days a week, so that Jill has coverage for her days off, but I think She just uses it as an excuse to visit us. I pull out my phone to send another message while I wait for the girls.

Ryan

In case I didn’t tell you before, I never liked Raven. I like her even less now.

Grey

What did she do now? *facepalm emoji*

Ryan

The manipulation tactics have only gotten worse with her. *eye roll emoji*

Grey

Where are you?

Ryan

Mud House, I’m waiting for the girls. Why?

I look up to see Hadley and Pickle walking towards me from the front door.

“What. The. Fuck.” Hadley enunciates each word.

“Exactly.” I sigh.

“Hold that thought, I’m ordering us coffee, then you’re telling us everything.” Pickle winks at me as she walks away. I laugh as I take a seat next to Hadley and rest my head against her shoulder, watching Pickle as she orders their drinks. It only takes a few moments before she sits down, passing Hadley her coffee.

“Ok, spill it, sister.” She takes a generous sip of her drink while I go into the details of my morning.

When I finally finish all the gory details, I hear a sharp intake of breath from Pickle as she looks over my shoulder.

“What?” I ask as I look behind me to see Grey standing in the door frame, looking like he’s about to rip someone”s head off.

Damn.