Chapter 11
Annalese
R iding back to the tattoo parlor in Haze’s convertible, I’m on top of the world. I got my cast removed and a clean bill of health. It’s taken a while but I’m feeling more and more like my old self. No, after being in Haze’s protective care, I’m feeling a hundred percent better mentally than I’ve ever felt in my life. It’s been a couple of weeks and I’ve even stopped obsessing about the stranger on the phone who called me Annalese rather than Anna.
I raise both of my arms just to feel the rush of air glide across my skin. The sun is shining on my face, and for once I’m able to let all my problems go. My phone jingles and I’m quick to answer it because it’s the ringtone I set for my mom. We talk off and on. My rehab was quick, compared to hers, but her injury was so much more complex.
Haze is always quiet when I talk to my mother. I wonder if he ever finds it odd that she never asks me to visit. If so, he doesn’t mention it. Of course, my mom and I both know that I can’t visit because my asshole ex and my stepbrother are on the lookout for me.
I give her an update on my medical condition and she’s happy I finally got my cast off. Unfortunately, her rehab isn’t going as well, the doctors had thought that in time, once the bruising to her spinal cord healed then she’d start to regain some mobility. She has feeling in her left foot, but still has numbness in her right. I can tell by the tone of her voice that the long recovery is getting to her, and one of the medications the doctors gave her for the muscle spasms she gets, is making her confused which isn’t helping.
At some point during the conversation, I hear muffled voices and the phone goes dead. This has happened before. She gets flustered when members of the medical team come in, and hangs up the phone without saying goodbye, to talk to them. It’s like she doesn’t have the capacity to do more than one thing at a time. It makes me sad, but I know she’s getting good care.
I slide my phone back into my pocket and try not to let the situation with my mom spoil the day Haze has planned for us. It’s hard though. I’m not going to pretend images of my mother don’t linger in my mind as we make our way back to the tattoo parlor.
Haze is good at picking up on my mood and immediately starts cheering me up. “Want to guess what I have planned for us today?” His voice is teasing and sexy as hell.
I feel a smile jump onto my face. “Let me guess, we’re going skydiving.”
“No. Too risky. Guess again,” he says smugly.
“Hand gliding?”
“No,” he states emphatically.
I raise one eyebrow and try again. “Bungee jumping?”
“Fuck no to all that, you adrenaline junkie.”
“Tell me then,” I demand lightly.
He hesitates for a moment as if he’s considering it but then shakes his head. “Where’s the fun in that. You’ll have to wait and see.”
I laugh at his shenanigans because I love surprises. In fact, I would have been disappointed if he’d just told me. Anticipation is half the fun in my humble opinion. We pull into his shop and instead of going in, he takes me over to his bike and pulls out a nice sleek black helmet with my name printed across the back in a beautiful script. He helps me put it on before sliding his own helmet into place.
“Reckon you’re up to holding on for an hour or two?” he says with a grin.
I wiggled my fingers and made a fist, “Doc’s signed me off for all activities, I’m good to go!”
***
Within moments we’re riding down the road that leads out of town. Being on the back of his bike with my arms around his waist and my cheek laying against the club emblem covering the back of his cut makes me feel both claimed and protected. I know that I’m not. Trix wears her husband’s cut, as do all the other old ladies. It’s a little reminder that I’m for fun and they’re for keeps. It leaves a little ache in my heart but there is nothing for it, since I can’t risk settling down in one place. I hate that, but it is what it is, and instead of feeling sorry for myself I just close my eyes and enjoy the ride.
After an hour on the road, I realize that we’re heading towards my old hometown and a sense of dread fills me as we get closer to my stepbrother and ex. I want to tell Haze to turn around, but he’s obviously planned a day for us, and I don’t want to spoil things. Oak Ridge is a big city, there’s no way that I’d run into those two, so I try and relax.
However, my fears are unfounded as he takes the next exit, and instead of heading towards the city we eventually end up at the port. He parks his bike and turns to me with a grin. “I have everything already set up. I think you’re going to love this, since you’re into thrill-seeking activities.”
“This is beginning to look like a water sports type of outing,” I tell him excitedly.
He lightly taps the tip of my nose and responds with a laugh. “You’re a smart lady. I can see that I’m going to have to stay on my toes if I want to surprise you again in the future.”
We walk towards the docks and stop in front of a boat. “It’s a yacht,” I say without thinking.
He nods and steps aboard, holding out his hand to help me onboard. “It’s actually a cabin cruiser. They’re smaller than yachts.”
“Are we going out on the ocean or staying docked?”
“We’re going to be crawling along the coastline today, instead of taking her out into deeper waters, so it should be a pretty smooth ride.”
“Still, skimming down the coast sounds amazing. I used to love being on my father’s yacht when I was a kid.”
“I remember you mentioning it,” he says happily.
I run my hands down my white jeans and sigh. “I wish I’d brought a swimsuit.”
He jerks his chin towards a shiny department store shopping bag with a large red crab on the front. “I ordered you some stuff to help you enjoy the day. Go check it out.”
I throw my arms around him and give him a hug before rushing over to my bag to peer inside. I feel like a little girl on Christmas morning opening a surprise gift. I stick my hand inside and pull out a red polka dot bikini top. It’s a really nice one as well, kind of retro looking with a halter neck. I take another look in the bag and see the high-waisted shorts. A quick check of the label tells me it’s my size and he’s gotten the top a size larger than the bottoms, so the bikini will fit perfectly. When my questioning eyes lift to his, Haze shrugs.
“Don’t shoot me but I looked at the tags in some of your clothing. I figured you might excuse the overstep because it’s a special occasion.”
“You thought right,” I tell him, still all smiles.
“That’s a big bag. Want to dump it out on the bed downstairs and look through everything when you change?”
Snatching the hefty bag up, I head in the direction he gestured towards. “Yes. I’ll be right back.”
“Take your time. I’m gonna get the boat into position and make us some blender drinks.”
I practically skip down below, happy as a clam. Haze really knows how to treat a woman to a special day. He makes it all seem so effortless, but no one in my entire life has gone to this kind of trouble for me. Not ever.
There are two cabins below deck, one has a desk and a smaller bed in it, the other has a larger bed and looks more lived in. I guess that this is the main cabin.
The décor is simple, mostly nautical with lots of wood. I see a little bookshelf in the corner with some well-thumbed classics. Taking in the room, I suddenly have a thought—is this Haze’s boat? I’d assumed he’d rented it for the day, but there’s something about how it’s decorated reminds me of his space at the back of the tattoo shop.
I walk over to the bed and empty out the bag. My eyes hardly know where to land with everything that spills out. In addition to the bikini, there’s a t-shirt, jean shorts and a large, flat box. When I open it, I realize it’s a gorgeous, champagne-colored, satin evening gown. In a small, red velvet box there’s a pair of diamante earrings. I run my hand over the fabric of the dress, trying to imagine where I would wear something like this.
I don’t dwell on it too long because I’m eager to get into the bikini and see if it fits. The minute I have it on, I stand in front of the mirrored door and turn back and forth. It fits me like a glove, the high-waisted shorts make me look like a fifties bombshell, and the halter-neck top is doing something spectacular with my breasts.
My pale skin and the red polka dots make my hair really pop. I’ve always considered my hair to be my least desirable feature, primarily because it got me bullied in grade school. Sometimes I think we spend our entire adult lives getting over shit that happened when we were young. However, taking in my reflection I’m happy with what I see. When I’m as presentable as possible, I grab the bottle of sunblock from the bed and head back to the upper deck.
Haze is waiting for me, wearing a pair of black swimming shorts that come almost to his knees. I can’t help that my eyes roam over his muscular shoulders and down his ripped torso. That man has a six-pack to die for. I can’t keep the smile off my face for anything.
He matches my energy by giving me the once over. “Damn, you look like a goddess in that bikini,” he says as he hands me a frozen daiquiri. “Welcome to my little escape. This is the place I come to get away from it all.”
I look around, realizing the boat is kind of posh. I wouldn’t say it’s luxurious by any stretch of the imagination but it’s way nicer than I would expect from a hard-working guy who drops ink for a living.
It’s as if Haze can read my mind. His amused voice explains, “My brother and I used to share a condo. When he and Trix got together he bought out my share. I was gonna look for an apartment, but then realized the shop was laying empty. So, I spent the money on the cabin cruiser instead—one of my customers at the shop was talking about upgrading and selling his old boat, so I got it for a steal and spent my weekends repairing it. This is the maiden voyage—at least with me as captain.”
He gestures me over to a seating area and we relax as he continues his story. “Vapor thought I was crazy, but he changed his mind when he saw it, he and Trix will make use of it too.”
“How long have you had the tattoo shop for?” I ask before taking a sip of the daiquiri.”
“When we were prospecting for the Savage Legion, we learned to drop ink from one of our club officers. We discovered he had a lot of irons in the fire when it came to investments, and he approached us a couple of years back to see if we wanted to buy the shop from him, because dealing with assorted businesses was getting in the way of family life. No money exchanged hands up front. We’re paying him twenty-five percent of our gross profits over a period of eighteen years. We’re almost two years into the payoff at this point and it hasn’t proven to be a stretch for us.”
Taking another sip of my drink, I ask, “Do you mind if I ask why it’s eighteen years in particular? Most people like nice round numbers, so I would have expected it to be a lower percentage over twenty years.”
He grins at me. “Damn, you’re smart. I was thinking along the same lines until he told us that he’s using the money to fund his children’s college fund. His oldest was a newborn when we made the arrangement, meaning he’ll need the money in eighteen years.”
I perk up, impressed by the sheer ingenuity of the arrangement. “That was a brilliant idea.”
Haze chuckles. “Yeah, Tank is all kinds of keen when it comes to making money. He keeps trying to advise me and Vapor, telling us we need to start investing. I’m too young for all that shit, maybe if I ever have a family then I’ll consider it. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I squander my cash, the boat is my only splurge.” He pauses and takes a mouthful of his drink before fixing me with a grin, “I did take his advice on one thing though, he thinks the second most important thing is a getaway, a place of refuge if you ever need to escape.”
“Your brother must love it here,” I murmur, because who wouldn’t love it and twins often enjoyed the same thing didn’t they?
“Vapor’s not a big fan of open water. He helped me fix the boat up and Trix is keen to sail but I guess that’s gonna—” his voice cuts off. “Anyway, my brother’s hideaway is a place near town with a view of the whole city.”
He takes a gulp of his drink and adds, “Don’t ask me about it. Like I said it’s top secret and if there is one thing my brother and I are good at, it’s keeping each other’s confidences.”
“I won’t ask. Everyone has the right to privacy after all.”
He stares out onto the ocean for a few seconds as if he’s deep in thought.
We sit in silence for a while, the sound of the waves lapping against the hull is so relaxing. Who wouldn’t want to live on a boat? I turn to him and say, “You already have a really nice apartment at the shop. Having the boat gives you another living option if you ever wanted or needed it. I don’t know what’s so great about buying and maintaining a whole house. You’d have to turn around and fill it with furniture and housewares. For you it would mean you’d be maintaining three residences, if you include the boat. It honestly sounds exhausting to me.”
His expression turns warm. “You and I think a lot alike, Anna. I can’t think of one good reason to buy another condo or heaven forbid, a house. It seems like I already have a lot to keep up with the boat and shop.”
“Yes. I agree. Plus, you’re a guy who only earns if you’re working. How much sense does it make to take time away from work to maintain a house you don’t actually need?”
“Not much. I have to admit that if I had kids that might factor heavily into buying a house so they would be in a good school district.”
“Correct me if I’m wrong but you don’t particularly seem like the settling down type.”
My comment must catch him off guard because his expression totally shuts down. “Yeah, of course, you’re right about that.”
Coming to his feet, he asks, “Are you ready to get into the water?”
Draining the last of my drink, I stand up. “That sounds amazing. What’s the plan?”
“I thought we’d go snorkeling for a bit, before we break out the jet skis and scare off all the fish.”
“I’m all in,” I tell him.
Within moments he’s pulled out the equipment, we’ve geared up, and are in the water. I love everything about this situation. Haze is the perhaps the nicest man I’ve ever met and he’s straight up eye candy with all his muscles on full display. I’m kind of glad that we’re not at a resort, because every woman on the beach would be staring at him. There is a little twinge of jealousy in my gut that takes me by surprise. I ignore it and get on with enjoying my day.