CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Kye
MY HEAD THRUMMED IN A STEADY BEAT AS I LEANED AGAINST the counter.
It didn’t matter that the house was now quiet.
The evidence techs had gathered everything they could from the yard, and Trace, Gabriel, Anson, and Dex had headed off to the station, likely to talk more openly than they could around Fallon and me.
Maybe that was for the best. But even though it was quiet, my head still beat like the drummer of one of Arden’s beloved death metal bands was playing a solo on my skull.
The fact that we were now being forced to seriously consider moving the girls to Colson Ranch until this maniac was caught only intensified the pain.
Movement caught my eye, a flash of pale-blond hair and angel eyes. Fallon stepped in front of me, offering me a Coke poured over ice and two Tylenol. I took them from her outstretched hands. “How’d you know?”
“Because I know you.”
I sipped the soda and swallowed the pills down, just looking my fill at the woman I’d never thought would be mine but, by some miracle, was.
Fallon hooked her fingers into my front jeans pockets. “Tell me.”
It was the same thing we’d said since she was fourteen and I was sixteen. The one thing we’d never lost along the way: the invitation for brutal truth.
And maybe the permission to be whoever we truly were in the moment—even if the reality was ugly—was the greatest gift we’d ever given each other.
“Feels like stupid choices I made back then will haunt me forever. I almost lost my sisters because of it. Still could. Scared the hell out of Nora and Lolli. Lost you.”
Fallon’s grip on my pockets tightened. “You didn’t lose me. I’m right here.”
“Lost you for far too long,” I whispered.
“You were so close. Like I could almost reach out and touch you. But my hands were trapped behind my back. I just had to hold tight to the secret haven you were in my mind. I’d lie in bed at night, reliving those stolen moments by the creek over and over. They got me through.”
Fallon searched my eyes for a long moment. “Would you do something with me?”
The response wasn’t what I’d expected. One corner of my mouth kicked up. “If it’s exploring the confines of that big-ass tub upstairs, the answer is yes.”
A light-as-air laugh bubbled out of Fallon, as if all the darkness swirling around us didn’t exist. “As tempting as that is, that’s not what I had in mind.”
I slid a hand along her jaw and into her silken mane. “Tell me what’s in that beautiful mind of yours.”
“I want you to tattoo me.”
A buzz lit under my skin, energy crackling as shock and need warred in equal measure. “You hate needles.”
“I do.”
“You literally can’t even look if you have to get a shot or need blood drawn.”
Fallon sent a fierce scowl in my direction. “I don’t have to look to get a tattoo.”
My mouth quirked. “Well, most people like to make sure I’m not permanently defacing their skin.”
She gripped my pockets harder, giving them a little tug. “I trust you. And I know whatever you do will be beautiful.”
I searched those fathomless blue eyes, taking in the depths where that trust burned bright. “It’s a big deal, a tattoo. Especially when you’ve never had one before. You sure?”
“Kyler … I’m sure.”
And fuck if there wasn’t pure certainty in her tone.
“You know what you want?” That was another test. Because if she didn’t have a vision, something she needed, I wasn’t setting a single needle on her skin.
Fallon’s mouth curved. “I know.”
“You gonna share with the class?” I pressed.
“I’ll tell you once we get there.”
Fuck me. I was going to mark the woman I’d loved from the moment I met her. And if that wasn’t the ultimate gift, I didn’t know what was.
The bell over Blackheart’s door jingled as I held it open for Fallon. The moment she stepped inside, I saw Bear’s whole face light up. “Now there’s my queen.” He moved around the desk and pulled her into a hug, then kissed both her cheeks.
“Careful where you put those lips,” I warned.
Bear guffawed, his eyes twinkling. “The repercussions would be worth it.”
Fallon swatted at his shoulder. “Don’t go stirring up trouble.”
“Who, me?”
Fallon laughed. “You stashing any cookies?”
“Well,” Bear began, “it just so happens I’ve been testing out a new chocolate peppermint recipe.”
“You know, I happen to be an excellent taste-tester,” Fallon said.
My arms came around her from behind. “So am I.”
Bear’s lips twitched beneath his gray beard. “I trust her taste more than yours.”
“Hey,” I protested. “My taste is Fallon, and you seem pretty fond of her.”
“Point well made.” A little of the amusement slipped from Bear’s face. “You guys hanging in okay? We weren’t expecting you today after everything.”
My gaze followed his to Jericho, who was wrapping the calf of a man who’d just gotten a list of names tattooed with some decorative Celtic elements woven around them.
“We’re doing okay,” I said, pitching my voice lower. “Just ready for whoever this is to be stupid and get caught.”
“Amen to that,” Bear echoed. “Trace got any leads?”
I shook my head. “They’re working on it. Doing everything they can.”
“Good, that’s good. You picking up something from your office?” Bear asked.
One corner of my mouth kicked up. “Actually, my wife would like a tattoo.”
A scoff sounded from down the hall, and I lifted my gaze to see Penelope walking our way, a sour look on her face. “I thought she hated needles.”
“I do,” Fallon said with zero animosity in her tone.
Penelope rolled her eyes. “Married to one of the most gifted men in ink, and she’s a virgin. What a waste.”
“Don’t be a bitch, Pen,” Jericho called as he straightened. “You made your play. Endless plays, in fact. You didn’t win. Grow up.”
“This has nothing to do with that. I was just making a point,” she snapped.
“Penelope,” I began.
Her multi-colored hair whipped over her shoulder as she turned back to me. “What?”
“You’re fired.”
She gaped at me, her sparkly lipstick only adding to the fish-like effect. “You can’t fire me.”
“This my business?” I asked.
“Yes, but—”
“Even if it wasn’t, I’d have a case for harassment—both the sexual and the good, old-fashioned bitch kind.
I probably could’ve kept on taking that brand of bullshit, but if you think you can make my wife, the woman I love more than air, feel uncomfortable in my presence, then respectfully …
get fucked. And get your ass out of my shop. ”
Jericho snorted as he snapped off his gloves. “Respectfully? Really, Priest? Not sure that pairs with get fucked.”
“I dunno,” Bear began. “I think it has a nice ring to it.”
Penelope’s face turned bright red. “You’re gonna regret this, Kyler.”
“You don’t get to call me that.” My voice cracked like a whip. “Only my wife calls me that.”
Fallon twisted in my arms. “Or your family when you’re in trouble.”
Jericho and Bear burst out laughing.
I dipped my head and kissed her. “True, Sparrow. But no one says it quite like you.”
“Disgusting,” Penelope spat.
“Clean out your room,” I ordered, my eyes narrowing. “Bear, you wanna make sure she doesn’t take anything that’s not hers?”
He shot me a salute. “It’d be my pleasure.”
Penelope stalked down the hall, stomping her feet the whole way.
“Jesus,” Jericho said, scrubbing a hand over his face.
Fallon winced. “Sorry to be the creator of drama.”
“Don’t you apologize. You didn’t do a damn thing,” Jericho shot back. “That woman’s a piranha, and it’s about damn time Kye kicked her ass to the curb.”
I pulled Fal into my side. “I’m sorry she was a bitch to you.”
Fallon simply shrugged, a small smile on her face. “I can’t begrudge her wanting you. But I can take issue with how she went about acting on that.”
“Dude,” Jericho said, his mouth curving. “How did you end up with the coolest chick on the planet?”
“I do not know, brother. I’m just trying my best not to fuck it up.”
Jericho laughed. “That sounds like a good plan.”
A frown tugged at my mouth as I really took in my best friend. The shadows under his eyes had made a home in his hazel eyes. But more than that, it looked like he’d lost five or ten pounds. “Are you okay?”
Jericho stiffened, pulling himself up straighter. “Yeah, man. Just tweaked about all this.”
“Have you seen anything?” I asked. “Anyone following you? Feel like someone’s watching?”
He shook his head. “Been moving around. Not staying at one place for too long.”
“Probably not a bad idea,” I muttered.
Fallon reached out and squeezed his arm. “Why don’t you come over for dinner this weekend? The girls would love to see you.”
Jericho forced a smile. “Wouldn’t say no to a home-cooked meal.”
“Good.”
“You really gonna let this knucklehead take your ink card?” Jericho asked.
“I am,” Fallon said with a smile. “And we’d better get a move on if we want to do it before we pick up the girls.”
She started tugging me down the hall, but I gave Jericho a chin lift. “Call if you need anything, okay?”
“Will do.”
But I knew he wouldn’t. Not unless he was desperate. I tried to shove worry for my friend down as I let Fallon lead me down the hall. She headed straight for my private room, slipping inside and closing the door behind us. “Can I lock this?”
My brows lifted. “You plan on taking advantage of me back here?”
Fallon laughed. It was my favorite kind, the type that was full of sunshine and good, clean air. The sort that was free. “We’ll have to save your tattoo room deflowering for another day.” She flipped the lock on the handle. “This time, it’s just so I can show you what tattoo I want.”
That intrigued me. But it intrigued me even more when Fallon’s slender fingers started unbuttoning her blouse.
“Sparrow …”
As she reached the last buttons, she shrugged the shirt off, dropping it to the floor, and stood there in only her jeans and a lacy, pale pink bra. Her hands reached behind her, and then that fell, too.
I couldn’t help but stare at her. She was so damn beautiful. The definition of breathtaking. And I wanted to memorize every dip and curve. The way her breasts were a few shades paler than the rest of her soft gold skin, how her nipples pebbled in the room’s cool air.
“Here.” Fallon pressed her fingertips between her breasts in the hollow of her sternum. “I’ve always felt you right here. In the good times and the bad, this is where I feel you. A place that’s always been yours.”
Fucking hell. She slayed me in the most brutal and beautiful ways.
“Maybe it’s because you’ve always been at the very center of everything for me. My grounding force. My haven.”
“Sparrow,” I croaked.
She crossed the room, lifted my palm, and held it to that spot. “It’s yours. I’m yours. Just like you’re mine.”
“What …?” I had to take a second to swallow the rising emotion. “What do you see there?”
Fallon pressed her hand harder against mine. “Haven. Surrounded by dogwood blossoms and sparrows.”
“I can’t imagine anything more perfect. And it would be my honor to ink it into your skin.”
“Forever,” she whispered.
My lips ghosted over hers as I returned the promise. “Forever.”