Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
Bailey
The week following the after-gala kiss passes by in a blur.
I’ve been working through a stacked schedule at the studio, and Remi is back to his hockey duties.
He left for a road trip a few days ago, but you wouldn’t think he’s nearly three thousand miles away because we’ve been talking nonstop, from texts to FaceTime calls.
Whenever I’ve not been tattooing or drawing designs for upcoming appointments and he hasn’t been on the ice, I’ve been glued to my phone like some lovesick teenager with their first crush.
It’s been ten days since Remi bamboozled his way into my life, and I don’t think I can remember what it was like without him in it.
I should be embarrassed about how easily I’m falling for him.
His fun-loving charm, his excitable personality.
His big, strong body that felt so good underneath my palms when there were mere inches between us the last time I saw him.
The memory of our kiss has played on an endless loop in my brain, and with him coming home today, I’m hoping I’ll get to relive it again in real time tonight.
And while I’m not embarrassed in the slightest, I may be just a teeny tiny bit scared of my feelings.
I’m finishing up on the final details on the geometric-style piece I’ve been working on when my colleague and fellow tattoo artist Stormi pokes her head through the archway that separates the main studio from the front of house area.
“Baileyyyy!” she sings, waving one hand in a flourish. “There’s someone here to see youuuu!” Then she lowers her voice, a devilish glint sparkles in her eye as she says, “And can I just say… he’s fucking gorgeous!”
My heart stutters. I knew he was getting back from Raleigh in the early hours of the morning, but I wasn’t expecting to see him until tonight.
Before I can tell her to send him through because I’m just wrapping up, he appears behind her like a vibrant bundle of energy. He’s holding a paper bag and coffee cup from the cafe around the corner in one hand, and he’s wearing the brightest smile I’ve ever seen.
“Bailey! I’m back! Did you miss me? Of course you did. I’m a missable guy.”
I snort a laugh, unable to deny any of it because yeah, I did miss him.
Not wanting to think too much into how I can miss someone I’ve known less than two weeks, I greet him with a soft smile. “Hey, Remi. Glad to have you back.”
He practically bounces over to me, greeting my client with the same exuberance he applies to everything in life, then gasps when he notices the tattoo I’m giving a final wipe over.
“Ohmigod! Look at that!” He peers over to look at the piece on my client’s bicep. “That’s so amazing! Isn’t he talented? He’s so talented. And pretty.” He turns to me and reaches over to tuck some hair that’s fallen into my face behind my ear. Another beaming smile appears on his face. “So pretty.”
Heat travels up my neck at his earnest tone, and I’m sure my cheeks have turned the color of a ripe tomato.
Stormi lets out an excited squeal. “I can’t fucking cope with this. Someone take a photo. Bailey is blushing. Blushing!”
My smile tips downward into a scowl. Lifting one hand, I give her the middle finger and mouth, “Fuck you.”
She places her palm over her heart. “Such a charmer.”
Ignoring her teasing, Remi watches as my client checks out their new piece in the mirror.
After, I take photos and wrap it, then go through the aftercare instructions and sort out payment.
Once they leave, Remi places the paper bag and coffee on the small table in the small lounge area and engulfs me in a tight, warm hug.
“Hi,” I squeak, wrapping my arms around his solid torso.
“Hey.” He gives me a squeeze before releasing me, then motions for me to sit down. “I brought you some lunch because I know sometimes you don’t get to eat, and you’ve gotta eat, Bailey!” He pierces me with a stern look that I didn’t know was possible on him. “Do you have time to eat with me?”
I open my mouth to say I have forty minutes until my next client, but Stormi appears so suddenly I jump in my seat.
“He does have time!” She places her hands on his wide shoulders. “Can we get you anything, Remi?”
He peers up at her with a wide grin. “I’ve got everything I need right here.”
Their attention lands on me, and my face instantly flames.
I narrow my eyes as Stormi gives his shoulders a squeeze, willing her to remove her hands before I remove them for her. She must sense my annoyance because she lets out a high-pitched “Aw!” before skipping back around the counter.
Remi fills me in on his away games while I tuck into the panini he bought me, all while he demolishes a large pasta salad and his own panini. I don’t think I’ll ever get over how much he eats.
“I watched your games, but I’ll admit, I had no idea what was going on.”
“You did? That’s so—” He stops abruptly and gasps before clapping his hands together so loud it startles me.
“Ohmigod, you should come to my next home game! It’ll be so much fun!
I get comp seats. Ohmigod! You could bring Lian!
” His voice gradually gets louder the more excited he gets, and I’m unable to hide my amusement.
I press my lips together, trying to hold back my laughter. This guy is so fucking precious.
“I mean, only if you want to? You’ve already done things for me that weren’t for you, and I understand if—”
I laugh softly under my breath at his nervous ramble. “That sounds like fun. Let me know when it is, and I’ll check with Lian if he’s free.”
He fist pumps and finishes the last of his pasta salad. “Am I still coming over tonight?”
“If you want to.”
Please say yes.
“Obviously!” He rolls his eyes, but he’s smiling like I’ve just said something cute. “What time shall I come over?”
“Maybe like five?”
He nods enthusiastically. “Okay. I’ll be waiting!” He spins around to face the rest of the studio. “Bye, everyone! May your day be blessed with cool tattoos and Bailey’s cute face!”
Then, he cups my face with his hands and kisses me. My eyes fall closed. Every nerve ending instantly lights up, and I practically melt into him. I walk him to the door, promising to see him later. When I turn around, I’m greeted by my colleagues’ amused expressions, and my face heats again.
“Okay, I love him,” Stormi says the second the door closes behind him.
“You better marry him, or I will,” Trevor threatens.
“He’s like a precious puppy,” Reggie coos, and their client nods in agreement. “So cute.”
“I hate you all,” I grumble, but I’m unable to wipe the smile from my face.
With Lian still on his cruise, Remi and I have taken over the living room. There are discarded takeout boxes scattered across the coffee table, and I’ve hooked up my second monitor so we can game together. Something we spoke about doing while he was away.
“Ooooh, look over here!” Remi crows, and then his character dashes out of view on my monitor. “It’s so nice!”
I quickly glance over to the TV, where his character is running off the safe path. “Uhh, I wouldn’t go over there if I were—” but my warning falls flat when he shrieks in terror.
“AHHHH!”
His character begins to run away, a horde of zombies following him. “Oh my god! AHH! I’m gonna die! Bailey! Save me! AAHHH!”
Snickering, my character runs in his direction, and I start taking down the zombies. I end up chasing him around the map as he tries to outrun them, only he ends up gaining more because he runs into the gathering hordes in the outer fields quicker than I can kill them.
“Remi, you need to stop running,” I say, chuckling.
A terrified “AHHHH!” is the response I get.
“Remi!” I choke out a laugh. “You need to help, otherwise I’m gonna run out of ammo, then we’ll both die.”
He presses all the buttons on his controller in no clear order. At one point, he swaps his gun for a medical kit and starts hitting the zombies with it.
My stomach aches from laughing. I can’t find it in me to be mad because he’s genuinely trying his best, and he’s so fucking adorable.
By the time we—or I should say, I—have taken all the zombies down, tears are streaming down my face. He lets out a heavy sigh of relief and flops back into the couch cushions.
“Wow, that was close. I nearly died,” he says, exasperated.
I wipe my face with the sleeve of my T-shirt and give him a pointed look. “You’re welcome.”
He grins, then tosses the controller onto the coffee table and launches himself at me. For the tenth time today, I’m engulfed in his strong arms, blanketed by his warmth. He smells so fucking good that I can’t stop from taking a deep inhale.
“Did you just sniff me?” he mumbles into my neck.
“Maybe.”
He’s silent for a moment, and then he chuckles without loosening his hold on me. “I’ll let you smell me because you saved me.”
“Gee, thanks. Best reward I’ve ever received,” I deadpan.
He lifts his head, but we’re still so close, our noses almost touch. “If we were in a real zombie invasion, would you save me?”
“Yeah, of course I would.”
Clearly, that was the right answer because he beams at me. “I would save you too.”
“Yikes. That doesn’t fill me with much hope of survival,” I groan playfully.
“Hey! I would fight them with my hockey stick. And my skates!”
“Mhm.”
“We would have to stick really close together. Share food.”
He wiggles his arms beneath my shoulders, curling around me until his fingers find the nape of my neck.
I wrap my arms around his shoulders, and now we’re so close, I can feel his heart beating against my own chest. His fingertips trace a featherlight line down my nape, and pleasure shivers down my spine to my groin.
Fully aware that his cock is currently pressed against mine, I drop my voice and rasp, “Share body warmth.”
His eyes turn dark and hooded.
“Naked body warmth,” he whispers, and then his lips are closing over mine.
A low moan rumbles in my throat as my tongue brushes his. He grinds against me, a slow, rhythmic shift of his hips, and my cock thickens beneath my zipper.
He must feel the evidence of the effect he has on me because he lets out a satisfied hum and rolls his hips a little rougher. He swallows down my moan, then ducks his head to nibble my neck.
I let out a small gasp, arching up into him.
“Should I be worried we’ve gone from talking about surviving a zombie invasion to humping each other on the couch?”
“Gotta save the planet,” he murmurs.
I snort. “By humping?”
“Humping saves lives.” He lifts his head, nipping my jaw and the corner of my lip. He runs a hand between us and squeezes my hard cock, eliciting a deep moan from me. “I wanna taste you, Bailey. Can I taste you? I bet you have a pretty cock.”
Fucking hell. I’ll be lucky if I don’t blow my load the second he pulls me from my boxers.
“You can do anything you want to me.”
A wicked grin spreads across his face, and I know in that moment that the fall from the high that is Remington McRae is going to hurt, but it’ll be so worth it.