Chapter 2
brANDON
With my head bent over my sketchbook, I tuned out the rest of the shop.
I still had some time before my next appointment, and I really wanted to finish this sketch.
I hadn’t had inspiration like this in years, so I had really been leaning into it lately.
My last muse was my ex, Miranda. At one point in our relationship, I thought she was my endgame, but when things got tough, she checked out.
At the lowest point in my life, the person who was supposed to be there by my side through it all disappeared.
Truthfully, I probably would have left myself too, because after my mom died, I was a mess.
But looking back, Miranda was done with me months before my mom actually passed away.
She hated how much time I spent at the hospital with my mom or helping around my parents’ house.
Not exactly how I’d want my life partner to act while my mom was dying, but I ignored her red flags because I didn’t want to go through losing my mom alone.
Sure, I had my dad and my brothers, but they were dealing with their own grief.
Then, when Mom died, I completely broke.
I didn’t handle things well at all and fell into a pretty deep depression.
I checked out of life because what was the point?
At least, that’s what I thought back then.
A couple of months after my mom passed away—a questionably respectable amount of time to wait before dumping your boyfriend—Miranda left.
Even though she was already gone emotionally, she ghosted me with no explanation.
So, there I was, depressed and grieving, and the girl I once thought I’d spend my life with abandoned me, too.
I was glad I dodged that bullet, but at the time, it was just another thing that pushed me further into depression.
I stopped living my life, rarely leaving my apartment.
Bathing was a chore, and at that point, I’d lost so much weight, you’d think I was the one who had gone through cancer treatments.
Thankfully, even though they were grieving too, my dad and brothers rallied and helped me see how badly I was handling everything.
I was at my rock bottom, and after spending a week at an inpatient facility, I followed up with an outpatient therapist each week.
Embarrassed as I was, I was also thankful that I got the help I needed—it saved my life.
Although it had been years, and I was back to my easy going self, now and then, I’d feel the sting of that abandonment. It’s something I was sure I’d carry for the rest of my life, but now have coping mechanisms in place to deal with those feelings when they come up.
The bell above the front door signaled someone entering the shop, pulling me out of my thoughts.
I looked up to see my brother, Nathan, walk in, followed by his new girlfriend, Daphne.
Lowering my eyes, I continued with my sketch.
I’d say hi to them in a minute. I really needed to get this sketch on paper while the idea was still fresh in my mind, and I still had a few minutes until my next appointment.
Moments later, I heard a throat clear, and I looked up to see the very subject of my sketch leaning up against my workspace. I quickly slapped my sketchbook closed.
Her arms crossed in front of her, pushing up her already ample chest. “Jumpy much?” She asked, leaning into my space. “Whatcha drawing?”
“What are you doing here?” I answered, avoiding her question as I pushed the book out of her reach and leaned back in my chair, trying to remain calm. She was the last person I expected to see.
“Daphne and I are getting bestie tattoos,” Lexi beamed back at me. “Nathan made us appointments.”
“Are you my one o’clock?” I asked hopefully.
It had been about a month since that debacle of a Halloween party, and I hadn’t been able to get her out of my mind since.
When shit hit the fan, I didn’t have time to say goodbye or get her number, so I was hoping we’d run into each other now that Nathan and Daphne had made things official.
“It’s me or Daphne, and I guess Dylan is doing the other, although the tattoo we settled on is so tiny I don’t know why we’re taking up two of your appointment times.” She pulled out a piece of paper from her purse to show me the design of two intertwined hand-drawn hearts.
“Did you draw these?” I asked.
“Yeah, we each drew one heart. I thought it was a cute idea and vanilla enough for Daphne’s boring ass,” she laughed.
“I can hear you, bitch,” Daphne called from the front of the shop, causing Lexi and me to chuckle.
“I’d love to tattoo you, if that’s okay?” I stood and started clearing my workspace.
“Yeah, that’s fine with me,” she smiled and then turned towards the front. “Daphs, Brando is going to do me.” My cock twitched.
“He’d better do no such thing, Lexi. Behave yourself.” Daphne joked back at her. God, did I want to do her alright, but I needed to keep my thoughts on the task at hand.
Lexi turned back to me. “Where do you want me?”
Her question had me imagining all the ways I’d like to have her—on my chair, bent over my desk, back at my place… the list went on and on. I shook my head. “Well, where do you want your tattoo?”
“I think right here, by my collarbone.” She pointed to a spot over her left breast, and I think I stopped breathing.
Tattooing had never been a sexual thing for me before.
It didn’t matter where the tattoo placement was; it was art on a canvas to me.
But the thought of touching Lexi anywhere had me half hard already. I really needed to focus.
I turned away from her to adjust myself and get some supplies from a cabinet.
I got to work setting up my station and motioned to the chair when it was ready.
“You can sit here.” She hopped up into my chair, and I began her consultation.
We chatted about size and placement, and then I went into the back room to make the stencil.
When I returned, I had her stand up so she could see the placement in a full-length mirror.
After confirming everything looked good, I had her get back up on the chair.
The tattoo was literally going to take me less than ten minutes, so I took my time getting started.
I wanted to spend as much time as I could getting to know her.
“So, you mentioned this was pretty vanilla? If you could get any tattoo, what would it be?” I asked, curious about her.
She bit her lip, deep in thought, and damn if that wasn’t sexy as hell.
“I don’t even like the ocean, but I love octopi.
Or are they octopuses? Whatever. I love them.
I think they are so beautiful and resilient, and they can adapt to so many situations, so I think I’d probably get an octopus or some tentacles or something. ”
“Octopi are cool. If you want, I can sketch up some ideas for you,” I offered. “I think an octopus would look sick wrapped around your thigh.”
“Oh, yeah? You checking out these meaty thighs?” She smacked, then grabbed onto one of her thick thighs and gave it a shake. I had to snap my mouth shut to keep from drooling.
I avoided her eyes. “How could I not?” Was it getting hot in here?
My cheeks flamed. While I wasn’t a player like Dylan, I also wasn’t shy, and I definitely didn’t blush when talking to a woman.
Lexi affected me in ways I hadn’t experienced before, but I needed to focus and not fuck up her easy-ass tattoo.
“Now lean back and try to stay still. This won’t take long at all. ”
“Ha! That’s what he said,” she laughed. “Well, I hope not, but you get the joke.”
I grinned. “Yeah, I got it.”
She leaned back, and I started her, checking in with her periodically to make sure she was okay. It was a small tattoo, just some fine lines, but it was still her first, so I wanted to make sure it was a pleasant experience for her.
I was leaning over her, finishing up, when she reached out and touched my arm. “Are you okay?” I asked, concerned that something was wrong.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I barely feel anything.
I was just wondering what this tattoo says.
” She pointed to my forearm. From the angle of my arm, she couldn’t quite make it out.
I leaned back and shifted my arm so she could read it.
With an arched brow, she asked, “Nice? Is there a story that goes along with it?” I lifted my other arm, and realization crossed her face. “Oh shit, you dirty bird.”
I snorted. Yeah, my forearm tattoos were sort of a running joke in my family.
One read Naughty and the other Nice. My little nod to my love of Christmas, but also to the two sides of me.
Sure, I was a ‘nice guy,’ but I also had a bit of a naughty side, especially in the bedroom.
My brothers didn’t know the specifics, but that didn’t stop them from giving me shit about it.
“What can I say? I love Christmas.” I chuckled and got back to her tattoo.
“Mmhmm.” She was too smart to believe that was the whole story, but didn’t press the issue. Her eyes closed as she leaned back against the chair.
“All done,” I said once the tattoo was complete. Lexi’s eyes popped open as I was cleaning the area one last time so she could check it out. “Whatcha think?” I motioned for her to go to the mirror.
She jumped up and practically bounced to the mirror. “Oh, my God! I love it! Daphne, let me see yours!” Daphne had finished too and came back so they could compare and snap a selfie.
Dylan interrupted them so he could get a picture for our social media. He was good like that, and I appreciated it. I sucked at social media, and while I always took pictures for my portfolio, I was terrible about posting them.
“I still gotta cover that,” I called after them. Lexi turned and gave me a huge grin. “Yes, sir,” she saluted me. Oop, that did it. My dick twitched again.
As the girls chatted and took more pictures, I started cleaning, then Lexi came back to my station.
“I just need a quick photo and then I’ll cover it for you.
” I coaxed her back to the chair with my hand on the small of her back.
A slight gesture that should have been nothing but felt too intimate.
I wanted to touch her everywhere, but hurried my hand away.
After Lexi was back in my chair, I snapped a quick picture, covered her new tattoo, and went over aftercare instructions.
Once I had gone over everything, I grabbed one of my cards from my desk and wrote my cell number on it.
“If you have questions or need anything at all, don’t hesitate to call. I put my cell on the back.”
“Oh, did you now?” She gave me a wink. Was she into me, too? I probably should have asked for her number, but I was too much of a chickenshit. She made me nervous, and I didn’t want to make things weird if she wasn’t interested.
I cleared my throat. “Ahh, yeah.” I pulled at the back of my neck. “Oh, and you can let me know about that octopus tattoo. If you decide you want me to sketch something up, shoot me a text.”
“Yeah, that sounds good. Thanks. I’ll let you know.” Lexi hopped down from the chair, and we walked to the front. “How much do I owe you?” She asked as we reached the desk.
“It’s on us,” Dylan interrupted as I was about to say the same.
“No way. This is your business; we can’t not pay,” Daphne said as she and Lexi both started digging into their bags.
I put my hand on Lexi’s arm. “Nope. Your money’s no good here. Besides, these were small and didn’t take up a lot of time. It’s really no problem at all.”
Lexi smiled up at me and laughed. “Thank you. That’s really nice. I guess I’ll get you next time for the octopus.”
Daphne turned and wrinkled her nose. “What octopus?”
“My next tattoo! Now that Brando popped my cherry, I’m so ready for more,” Lexi said excitedly and turned back to me.
“Thanks again. I really love it. I’ll let you know when I’m ready for my next one.
” Then she darted up on her toes and hugged me.
I was so surprised that I barely had time to return her embrace before she was gone.
The bell to the front door rang, and I vaguely recall Nathan and Daphne saying their goodbyes as I stood there replaying my whole interaction with Lexi.
“Fuck,” Dylan said, drawing my attention back to the present. “Not you too.”