Chapter 2
Ahmad
“It’s about time you showed up.” My sister, Autumn, opened her door and moved to the side.
I stepped inside her house, ignoring her comment.
“I got caught up at the shop, but I’m here now,” I informed her, looking around her empty house. There were boxes stacked up against the wall throughout the long hallway.
“I guess better late than never.” Autumn smacked her lips then turned and walked to some boxes. “We can start with these; they go in the kitchen.”
I shook my head. “You know you could have had the damn movers do this, right?” I picked up one box and followed behind her.
“They did, but I only paid for a certain number of hours, so I figured you could just help with the last of it.”
No surprise there. Autumn was so damn spoiled she thought everyone was supposed to drop everything they were doing for her, which they normally did.
Our father, Andre, was to thank for that.
Although our parents weren’t millionaires, they were comfortable.
My father owned a construction company that did fairly well over the years.
He went from doing small homes to big contracts that led him to give me, my sister, and our mom a good life.
Hence why Autumn thought she could have whatever she wanted and no one was supposed to go against it. I didn’t want any handouts from my dad’s small fortune. I wanted to go out in the world and build my name with no help.
“I’m glad you thought I would take time out of my day to come help you move some boxes.”
Autumn turned to face me with a huge smile. “You’re here, right?”
Shaking my head, I had to give it to Autumn.
She knew I would be here. Just like my dad, I had no problem with giving her what she wanted.
Being that it was just us two, we grew up close.
Our parents were strong on family. Although she was four years my junior, Autumn has always been my heart.
From the moment she came home from the hospital, my dad instilled in me that I was supposed to always be there for her and protect her.
“When are you going to let me finish this?” I ran my hand over the unfinished tattoo on Autumn’s right shoulder.
I had been here for going on two hours helping her get her new place together and was preparing to leave.
Autumn looked over her shoulder at me like I was crazy. I chuckled and shook my head. Autumn and I favored a lot. We both had dark, hooded eyes that we inherited from our dad.
“Are you crazy? I barely was able to get through this.” Her frown deepened.
“You’re overthinking it,” I said as I stepped back from her.
“No, you’re just crazy. I don’t see how you got all that on you.” Holding my arms out, I examined the work of art on my body, admiring them.
Many of the tattoos that filled my arms were my work, so I took pride in them.
“Trust me, once you start, you won’t want to stop.
” My phone went off in my shorts. I took it out of my pocket.
Seeing it was a number I didn’t have saved, I ignored it.
The only time I answered unknown numbers was on my business phone because they more than likely wanted to schedule an appointment.
Other than that, my personal phone was for people I knew.
“Must be one of your little girlfriends.” Autumn looked at my phone, grinning.
I glanced up at her with a smirk on my face. “I don’t have little girlfriends. You know I ain’t even worried about any broad right now.”
“I don’t see why you would let Kylie just stop your whole life.”
Her mentioning that name caused my whole mood to shift. I slid my phone into my pocket and gave Autumn a blank look. The last person I was trying to discuss was Kylie.
Kylie was the last woman I gave my heart to, and I promised myself I would never do that shit again. She showed me that women were sneaky and disloyal. The only two women I trusted were my mom and sister.
“Kylie doesn’t have me doing anything.”
“Mhm, could have fooled me. Before her, you weren’t so guarded and mean. Now all you do is walk around with a frown on your face, using women like some object, not letting them get close to you.”
For some reason, when she mentioned me not letting women get close to me, the girl from the coffee shop popped in my head.
When I first walked into the coffee shop, she was so into her camera that she didn’t even notice me.
When she finally looked up, I was instantly taken by her beauty.
She had a youthful look to her face, making her look younger than I assumed she was.
Her honey color hair was in its natural state that seemed to become a trend and in a bun.
Her hair color complimented her bronze skin tone well.
Normally I was attracted to women that had a little more meat on their bones and more shape to them, but her thin frame fit her well.
She wasn’t downright skinny though. Her chest was full, like two firm melons, and even though she had an apron on, I could see her waist was small, and the black leggings she sported showcased her ass.
It wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small either.
Enough to be noticed, but nothing to brag about.
“Ahmad!” Autumn called out, snapping me out of my thoughts.
“What?”
“You just zoned out. Is everything okay?” I nodded and tugged on my beard.
“Yeah, I’m about to head back to the shop though. I have some appointments I need to take care of.”
My phone vibrated again. This time I didn’t even attempt to look at it. Autumn gave me a questioning look.
“Okay, are you going to mommy and daddy’s this weekend?”
Nodding my head, I walked over to my sister and pulled her into a hug. “You know I wouldn’t hear the end of it if I didn’t.” Autumn giggled.
Our parents made sure one Sunday out of the month, both Autumn and I came over for dinner. It’s been like that since I moved out and probably will never change.
“Okay.”
After letting her go, I turned and headed to the front of her house so I could leave.
____
“You’re so good at what you do Ahmad. How did you get into tattooing?” The girl in my chair asked me.
I glanced up at her and then focused back on her thigh, continuing the tattoo I was currently in the middle of.
Marci had been here for close to two hours getting this thigh piece done. She wanted this garden piece, full of different flowers, colors, and shading on the side of her thigh.
I wasn’t into a lot of talking when I was working because I liked to concentrate.
Not to say I didn’t talk to the people in my chair because it helped ease whatever nerves they had when getting under the needle, but I liked to work in silence, letting the music I played in the background be the only sound.
“Shit, I don’t know. I always liked to draw, and when I got my first tattoo, I knew it was what I wanted to do.” I grabbed a paper towel to wipe the area I had just shaded.
Marci flinched slightly. I looked up at her.
“Your leg is swollen, and we still got a ways to go. You gone be able to handle it, or you want to come back?” I asked her.
Some people couldn’t finish a big piece in one sitting.
Marci was trying to be a trooper, but I could see it on her face whenever I glanced up at her.
She wasn’t feeling the pain the tattoo brought to her.
I had completed the outlining and was now adding some shading and was about to start the color.
It would be another two hours at least until I finished.
Marci glanced down at her thigh then smiled. “No, let’s finish it.” She brushed her hand across my shoulder. I nicely shrugged it off.
Since she’s been here, she’s been flirting with me, trying to make small talk and rubbing on me. I didn’t like people in my personal space like that.
Marci was an attractive girl, but I wasn’t interested. All she could offer me was some pussy then carry her ass on. If she wanted something deeper than that, I wasn’t the guy for her.
She had come in here with some little shorts that showed off the bottom of her plump ass and a small shirt that gripped her even fuller chest and showed off her stomach.
“You know I've always been into tattoos. Have you ever thought about letting someone shadow you?” she flirted.
“Nah.” I started back on her thigh.
She jumped slightly. I glanced up at her and she gave me a small smile. Shaking my head, I stared back.
“You’re not really a talker, are you?”
“Only when it’s something to talk about.”
“Mhm.”
Finally, she got the hint that I wasn’t trying to engage and allowed me to finish her tattoo in silence.
Two hours later, she was looking in the mirror in my room, smiling.
“Ahmad, this is amazing. When my girlfriend recommended I come to you, I thought it was just because of how attractive you were, but you’re really talented.”
I smirked and shook my head while starting to clean my area up. I had an hour break in between appointments and wanted to go grab something quick to snack on.
“Come over here so I can wrap you up,” I instructed her.
She looked at me in the mirror. Her smile grew. Slowly, Marci made her way to me.
“Do you have a girlfriend, Ahmad?” She stared at me curiously.
I finished wrapping her thigh up then glanced at her.
“Nah, I don’t, and I don’t want one.” A small pout appeared on her face.
“You know, your attitude isn’t the best.” I shrugged.
“As long as my work is then I’m good. Pay at the desk up front.” Marci’s shoulders sank before she nodded and walked out of my room.
Chuckling low, I continued cleaning my area up.
“What you do to baby girl? She looked like she lost her best friend.” Neal, another tattoo artist in my shop, walked in and asked.
I turned to face him. “Man, I ain’t do nothing to that girl. She came in here, got her tattoo, then tried to hit on me. When she saw I wasn’t interested she got in her feelings.” I shrugged.
Neal laughed and shook his head. “You gone have to stop breaking all these girls’ hearts that come in here.”
I chuckled. “I don’t do shit but what they pay me to. They’re the ones that come in here hoping I pay them attention.”
Even though my tattoo shop was one of the most popular in the area, it didn’t mean everyone came here just because me and my workers were talented. A lot of the females that walked in hoped that they would catch my eye, which they didn’t, but they always tried.
My mind shifted to the woman at the coffee shop again. Since things went left with Kylie and me, I didn’t get too invested in women, but something about the young girl kept pulling my thoughts to her. The way my presence clearly made her nervous was cute to me.
“Hey, Neal, your next appointment is here,” Laci, our receptionist, called out.
“Cool, put him in my room and I’ll be in there.”
“For real though man. You’re too guarded. It’s okay to let someone in.” Neal turned and walked out of the room.
Usually, I would tell my employees to mind their business, but Neal and I had been cool since we were in Junior High.
He’s been with me since the beginning. The closest person to a best friend I had.
Still, I wasn’t sure what the hell was up with everyone telling me that shit today.
I wasn’t trying to take it there with a female.
I did that shit once and it didn’t work out.
Not bothering to read into it anymore, I finished cleaning my area up so I could leave.
____
Stepping into the coffee shop, I stood by the door and watched the girl from the other day move around behind the counter.
Her back was to me and I couldn’t help but admire her. The smell of freshly brewed coffee beans filled my nose.
I looked around the coffee shop. It was small but gave you a cozy at home feeling. I was big on energy, and the energy in here was calming. It wasn’t super busy and crowded like Starbucks or any of those other big coffee shops, which was a plus. You could come in here and have peace.
Making my way up to the counter, I stood there silently watching the barista. The energy radiating off the girl seemed to fill the room. It was upbeat and vibrant, instantly putting you in a good mood. My eyes went to her ass. It jiggled a little as she moved around behind the counter.
“Oh, shit!” she shrieked, grabbing hold of her chest when she noticed me. “I didn’t even hear you come in.”
I gave her an amused look. “You’re not very aware of your surroundings.”
She looked at the door before giving me a shy smile. “I usually am, but not many people come in here when we first open, so I usually have at least a half hour to get myself together.”
She approached the counter. “What can I get you?”
I looked her over, noticing the name tag attached to her apron. “Fatima? I like that.” At first, she gave me a confused look until I nodded toward her name tag. She glanced down.
“Oh yeah,” she nervously laughed.
I noticed that she became nervous when I was around her. It had only been twice, but both times she seemed to be reserved for some reason. I felt like that wasn’t normally her.
“Let me get the Wake Me Up smoothie and—"
“A toasted croissant,” she finished for me. I tugged on my beard and smiled at her.
“Yeah.” Nodding her head, Fatima turned to get my order ready.
“I’ve never seen you in here before. You new to the area?” Fatima questioned me with her bright, round, brown eyes. I considered how smooth her skin looked, almost as if it was glowing.
“Nah, I just switched gyms, so instead of going across town to the other place I used to go, I decided to check this place out.” Fatima nodded.
“And I assume you liked the smoothie?”
Tucking my bottom lip between my teeth, I took my eyes off her to the small oven that just beeped. Fatima walked over to take my croissant out.
“Yeah, it’s cool.”
I watched her finish getting my order ready. When she walked over to ring me up, I had my money ready for her.
I grabbed my order, handing her the twenty in my hand, preparing to leave.
“What’s your name?” she asked me. “I try to know all our regular customers,” she quickly followed up with.
Smirking at her, I narrowed my eyes, taking in how she pulled on the end of her hair. It must be something she did when she was nervous. Today she was wearing a curly ‘fro that surrounded her oval face.
“Ahmad.”
She gave me a once over before nodding. “I hope you enjoy your smoothie and have a good workout Ahmad.” She smiled softly at me.
“Since my first view was you this morning, I’m sure I will.” I winked at her then turned to leave, leaving her speechless.
While I was walking out, someone else walked in. I stepped to the side to allow the girl in and gave Fatima one last look. She still had a shocked expression on her face, which caused me to laugh.
Fatima, I thought when I got into my car. I didn’t know what drew me to the barista, but for some reason, I was looking forward to seeing her tomorrow morning.