Chapter 6
six
As Kelsea breezes out the door, I focus back on the mandala design in front of me.
My mind pulls me back to where I keep seeing this pattern.
Every night I dream about the goddess who haunts my every thought.
My most recent dreams have consisted of Kelsea’s creamy porcelain skin under my hands as I drag my tattoo gun across her hip, permanently branding her with my art.
I wouldn’t ever reveal to her that’s where this idea came from.
But even now, I see the image in my mind again.
Her muscles contract and relax against the sting of the needles, but she doesn’t pull away from the pain.
Just the thought of my recurring dream has my cock standing at attention.
This particular dream always ends with me burying myself balls deep into Kelsea’s sweet heat, her luscious ass bent over my tattoo chair, begging me for more.
Nope, I definitely won’t tell her where this design came from.
I toss my sketch pad onto the couch beside me and stand, stretching my aching fingers, trying to force some circulation anywhere else but my dick. It’s no use. There is another frigid shower in my future, for sure. I’ve grown accustomed to them since Kelsea moved in.
I’ve always seen Kelsea for the natural beauty she is.
Lately, it’s gotten a lot harder to keep my fucking hands to myself whenever she's around.
The sweet almond scent that clings to her, the way she always has a smile even on the worst days.
That woman is an addiction, and I know I could overdose on her so easily. But a woman like that deserves better.
Pushing thoughts of her from my mind, I scroll through my calendar, checking my appointment schedule for the night.
Looks like I’ve got back-to-back clients, so I probably won’t be home until after 2 am.
I shoot Rory and Kelsea a quick message not to wait for me for dinner and hustle through my routine.
After I’m dressed and ready for the afternoon, I climb on my matte black Indian Scout and point it towards the shop.
I swear nothing gets me hotter than the feeling of the pipes rumbling between my legs.
Well, almost nothing. But the power and freedom I feel when I’m riding has no comparison.
My mind goes completely blank as soon as my ass hits the leather seat.
I’m no longer plagued by images of the shit I’ve done in my past. Sometimes, I take the longest routes to get to where I’m going just to enjoy a few more moments of peace.
But it never lasts. Reality always seeps in.
I pull into my spot behind the shop and drop the kickstand, switching off the engine.
The immediate loss of the deafening rumble of exhaust pipes echoes all the way through my soul.
Most people would say they enjoy the silence, but not me.
Silence just gives me space to hear myself think, and I can’t handle that shit for long.
When I joined the Marines, I knew I wouldn’t be anything more than a professional door kicker.
But I was fine with that. I felt a pull to serve my country in any way I could, and I was excited about the adventure I could find in the service.
What I didn’t expect was the damage my mind would take the first time I took somebody’s life.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t regret a single thing I’ve done in my life.
When it came down to saving my own life and the lives of the men who depended on me, I never hesitated.
But making those choices takes a toll on you, mind and body.
Luckily for me, I met Elijah. We were each other’s lifeline on the nights when mortar fire kept us all awake.
Moving to Grovewood and opening the shop with him was probably one of the easiest decisions I ever made.
Coincidently, it worked out even better for my sister, when she moved in with us and fell for my best friend.
I’ll admit, it freaked me out in the beginning.
But seeing how happy they make each other is worth it.
And knowing that in just about two months I’ll be an uncle to a new set of twins makes it even more obvious that the two of them were meant to be.
The bell above the front door chimes as I make my way inside Grovewood Ink to start my day. I wave to our receptionist, Willow, and see her son Jax huddled on the couch in the waiting room, his face buried in a sketchbook.
“No school today, Jax?” His attention snaps to the sound of my voice and he grins.
At 15, he’s a heartthrob for sure. I know if he wanted to, he could give his mama trouble, but he’s a good kid.
When we hired Willow, she told us his dad ran out when he was just a baby, so it’s just been the two of them since.
They both work hard to make life easier for each other, and it seems like a great dynamic.
“Early release for some shitty reason or another,” he says, focusing his attention back on his artwork.
“Jax, watch your mouth,” Willow says, rolling her eyes. I laugh at her attempt to keep him wholesome, knowing the things he hears every day in this place could make a sailor blush. I hear him mumble a sheepish sorry as I turn into my station and start setting up for my first client.
The night flies by for the first few hours.
Friday nights are usually slammed with kids from the local community college.
By 9pm, I’ve already done matching Greek letters for a group of sorority girls, a beer can on a guy’s ass after his buddies dared him, and the always boring and cliche ‘carpe diem’ quote for some kid who just turned 18.
My hands and mind are both itching for a challenging design, but I doubt I’ll see it tonight.
Around 10:30 I hear the bell above the door ring, followed by my sister’s cheerful voice shouting above the buzz of tattoo guns.
“Time for a break, guys! Dinner’s here!” She waddles her way down the hall, and I do mean waddles. I figured she would be huge if she ever had a kid with Eli because he’s a fucking giant. But twins? I’m surprised she can even walk at this point.
I drop my sketch pad, beaming with pride at the finished mandala design I’ve been working on all day.
I took Kelsea’s advice, of course, and turned it into a flower.
Honestly, it looks beautiful. Feminine, but still intricate and bold, a perfect contrast of colors and lines.
“Hey Sparky, you didn’t have to go to all this trouble just for me,” I say, rubbing my hands together excitedly as I dig through the bag of tacos and burritos she dropped on the counter.
“I didn’t,” she scoffs, and I fake a knife to the heart.
“You wound me! You mean to tell me you did all of this just to get some dick?!” I say, faking shock and watching the blush of embarrassment creep up her neck.
“Everett Wayne! Knock it off or I’m taking away your tacos,” she says, not denying my suggestion, but ignoring it completely.
“Yeah, Everett Wayne. If all she wanted was dick, she wouldn’t have to bring me dinner. I’ll give it up for free, Sunshine,” Eli says, coming into the room behind her and wrapping his arms around her swollen belly.
“You’re both ridiculous. This is why we can never have anything nice.” She rolls her eyes but leans into Elijah’s touch, kissing his cheek as he whispers something in her ear that makes her blush even redder than she already was.
“Excuse me, I’m trying to eat here,” I tell them, faking disgust. In the beginning of their relationship, it bothered me to see them all lovey dovey, but I’m used to it by now. I’m happy they’re both so happy together.
“Yeah, me too. If you left, I could get to eating my dinner much faster,” Eli says with a smirk and I gag.
“Dude, ew. Thats my sister.” I drop my food to the plate in front of me, suddenly not as hungry as I was a few moments ago.
“Bro, that’s my wife,” he replies, emphasizing the last part.
When Ember told me they were planning on eloping a few weeks ago, I was a little disappointed.
I figured she would want a big white wedding.
But she was adamant that all she wanted was to be married before my niece and nephew are born.
She beams back at him at the mention of her new title, and I feel like I’m drowning in love just being near them.
Ember’s phone rings, interrupting our conversation. She picks it up, and even from a few feet away, I can hear Kelsea’s raised voice coming through the speaker.
“Woah, woah, woah, slow down, Kels! Whats the issue?” She asks, and I listen intently for any scraps of their conversation I can hear.
“Uh huh, uh huh. Well, I told you he was an asshole! You should have let Eli beat his ass,” she says, rolling her eyes.
I give her a confused look, prodding for more info, but she shakes me off.
“Just come to the shop. I brought dinner and we can just hang here tonight until the guys are done. Then they can go track maggot Malcolm down and kick his ass,” she smirks, but my blood boils at the mention of Kelsea’s boss.
I thought I did a good job of deterring him from fucking with her, but apparently not.
“Ok, see you in a sec.” With that, she hangs up and shoves her phone back into her pocket.
“What happened?” I ask, my tone darker and more intense than I mean for it to be.
“Oh, nothing new, just her asshole boss being himself. Did she tell you he tried to grab her boob the other day? Totally tried to play it off like he was just brushing past her, but that definitely wasn’t the case.
Apparently, today he tried something new.
She didn’t give me any specifics, but she sounds really upset.
” Ember makes her way to the dining table in the small break room and props her feet up in the chair beside her.
“What the fuck?! Why wouldn’t she tell me that dick tried to feel her up?? I already tried to give him the impression she was taken, so he would back off.” Fire is burning through my veins already. I’ve always had a problem keeping my anger in check, but I try to rein it in.
“I don’t know, Ev. Probably because she's worried you or Eli would put him in a coma and she likes her job too much to jeopardize it.” Ember suddenly sounds exhausted and Eli instantly comes to her side, rubbing her shoulders reassuringly.
“It’ll be fine, babe. Ev and I will take care of it. Please don’t stress. You know what the doctor said about watching your blood pressure.” I see Ember roll her eyes, but she doesn’t argue.
“I’ll talk to her when she gets here and get the rundown,” I try to be reassuring too, but I’m pissed. Pissed at Kelsea for not coming to me about this and livid that her boss can’t take a fucking hint.
Willow comes into the room with her purse already slung over her shoulder. “Hey guys, do you mind if I head out? I just checked in your last client, Eli. Ev, your 10:45 said they aren’t gonna make it, so you’re free for the rest of the night.”
“Yeah, that’s fine, Will. We can shut things down, no problem,” Ember answers her before either Eli or I can get a word in. “Tell Jax good luck on his math test tomorrow,” she says with a smile.
“I will! Make sure you keep your feet up and make Elijah give you a massage later,” Willow says, pointing a scolding finger at Eli. “It’s good for the circulation, Elijah. You got me?” Eli gives her a mock salute, and she gives us a wave as she heads for the door.