Barber Shop Ink: Always Blue in Memphis

by Penny Blush

  “So, what did you want to show me?”

  “Okay, so this is the rough list of what I have come up with so far, but I have only been at it for a few hours,” Hedge said, pointing to the list nine miles long on her tablet.

  "I see," I said flatly, shocked that she found so much that need addressing in such a small amount of time.

  Hedge scrunched up her nose, tucking the imaginary stray hair behind her ear again. "Umm, yeah, so I will be able to get a better idea of everything for you in a day or two, I just didn't want to disturb anyone while they were working," she looked at me defensively.

  Did she think I was having a go at her?

  “Hedge honey, I’m sorry, I wasn’t criticising you,” indicating to her list, I chuckled, “I just didn’t realise how epically fucked we were.”

  "It's not that big of a deal," she said encouragingly, touching my arm while still looking a little wary, "it's just when you write it all down it seems like a lot, and not everything needs addressing straight away." She had kept her hand on my arm and was now swirling her thumb across my skin. "You haven't reached ‘Life Support' level of disorganisation just yet," she smiled at me, and that was it I was a goner, and right then I became utterly lost to her.

  Death-by-smile, that’s a thing, right?

  "I'd say based on my cursory exam, you're more like ‘Battle Stations' status," Hedge looked back at her tablet dropping her hand. "So, did I scare you off?" She asked quietly, no longer looking me in the eye. "If you want, I can print off my list, and you can get to them when you get a chance, I know it's all a bit much." She looked at me again with a defeated smile, "I mean I know you're doing Jax a favour and just being nice offering me a job, but I understand…." She tailed off.

  I sat there, staring at the lengthy list of things that needed fixing. I had no idea that’s how bad it had gotten, I mean I knew we were struggling, but fuck me this was insane. Looking at the list, I realised how desperately we needed Hedge. This woman was a freaking Godsend.

  My mind still reeling I asked, "How long did you say that you've been working on this?"

  “A little over three hours,” the defensive tone was back.

  “And this is what you came up with in three hours?”

  I ran my hands through my hair, trying to figure out how the hell I was going to get through everything that needed to be done, but more importantly, how the hell am I going to pay for everything?

  "I mean, it's not that thorough, and I know that things are missing…."

  "No Hedge," I said cutting her off, covering her tiny hand with mine to stop the frantic scrolling she was doing. "I'm just… I mean… Wow! I think, I, we, the shop needed you a year ago. All of this is just…" I couldn't get a coherent sentence together, and my head was spinning. "Please tell me that you're taking the job. There is no way you can just leave me with this list, ‘cos my head would explode, I wouldn't be able to cope." I looked at her desperately, "Hedge, I need you to take the job, please! I need help urgently! I'm going to need someone to hold my hand and guide me through all this," I couldn't help looking at our joined hands.

  Hedge took in a relieved breath, before staring at me with sparkles in her eyes. "Yes Memphis, if you're still offering it, I would love the job, hand holding and all," she said squeezing my hand.

  I was so relieved that I wouldn't have to deal with everything by myself. I have enough going on without adding this to the shit fight that had become my life. Before I knew what, I was doing, pulling Hedge in for a hug and considering that I had pulled her chair between my legs; she ended up sitting in my lap. Hedge sucked in a shocked breath, putting her hands on my chest to stop her from crashing into me.

  “Thank you, Hedge," I gave her a kiss on the forehead, "Thank you."

  I couldn’t and didn’t want to let her go. I still had my arms tightly wrapped around her when she looked up at me. We were so close that our lips were practically touching.

  She moved her hands to my sides, slowly stroking my sides, her lips moving against mine as she whispered. “No worries Memphis, my pleasure.”

  Having Hedge in my arms so close that I could feel her breath and lips against my own, feeling her luscious body against mine, her sweet, tropical scent invading my senses was too much. I kept my eyes locked on hers, I lightly brushed my lips against hers, watching her pupils dilate, glad that I had not misread what had been going on between us. Hedge licked her lips, causing her tongue to glide against my bottom lip and I had to fight to suppress a moan from escaping.

  Hedge’s eyes flicked between my eyes and lips. Encouraged, I ran my lips against hers again, brushing them with a feather light kiss. I felt her hands fist my t-shirt at my sides as I moved my hand to the back of her neck. Slowly I massaged my thumb along her hairline, tilting her head slightly to deepen the kiss when the back door slamming open, banging against the wall, broke the moment. Hedge jumped back into her own seat like she’d been struck by lightning. How the hell did she move that fast? She was a freaking ninja.

  She ducked her head, looking back at the tablet. Her demeanour once again professional, her cheeks heating with a blush the only indication that we were about to be anything but professional when a voice hollered.

  “Boss-man what’s doing?” Freaking Davis, my other body mods technician asked, hanging off the kitchen door frame.

  "Hey Davis, how's it hanging?" I replied but thinking - You kiss interrupting bastard! So, it would appear my thoughts do stay in my head, sometimes.

  “You know boss, long and strong. That’s why I have to wear such long shorts,” he said winking at Hedge, grabbing his crotch and sucking his lip ring in between his teeth while dragging his eyes up and down her body. “And who is this luscious sweet thing?”

  An angry Jaxon saved my fist from having a conversation with Davis's face, by smacking Davis upside the head as he shouldered past him into the kitchen.

  “She’s my cousin, douchebag, eyes off!” Jax hissed,

  “Ouch, sorry dude didn’t know,” Davis said, rubbing the back of his head.

  “Davis, he’s our other body mods tech,” I explained to Hedge.

  “He’s also an asshole,” Jax added, smirking.

  “Davis, this is Hedge, our new Manager,” I said, making introductions.

  "Hedge, unusual name," Davis said, shaking her hand. I had to fight the urge to pull her back onto my lap, slapping his hand away from her.

  “Thanks, nice to meet you,” she said politely, extracting her hand and it made me happy to know that smug little shit did not affect her.

  “Hedge accepted?” Jax asked, looking between the two of us.

  “More like Memphis accepted,” Hedge said, squeezing my knee under the table, her touch making my cock jump. “I didn’t think he would after he saw the list.”

  “Told you, Dude, she’s amazing,” Jax said, giving Hedge a kiss on the top of her head on his way to the fridge.

  Yeah, she is I thought, gazing into her eyes again.

  “Have you shown her upstairs yet?” Jax asked, leaning against the sink, shoving a muffin into his face. “I’ve got one more appointment and a consult then I’m done for a while so I thought when you’re done with Memphis we could grab dinner, boss lady,” a smile lit his eyes looking at his cousin.

  “No, not yet, we were just going over what Hedge found so far, then we were going to check out upstairs,” I explained.

  "You are looking at the apartment upstairs," Davis asked as Hedge nodded in reply. "Cool, that means you'll be nice and close," Davis licked his lips which earned another slap to the head from Jax.

  “Dude, more sister than a cousin,” he growled at him in warning. “Also, she's the new manager, which means she's your boss," Jax said the words carefully and slowly, hoping that Davis would get the point to back the fuck off.

  "What?! I just meant if I happen to have any management type questions that she could be found quickly, for work related reasons," Davis replied, trying and failing to sound i
nnocent while shoving Jax.

  "Alright you clown's get back to work," I said as they pushed and shoved each other out of the kitchen. "Sorry about that," I laughed, "it's more like a kindergarten around here than a business most of the time, but they are good guys, and they are awesome at what they do. If it wasn't for the fact that they’re so good at their jobs and if I didn't love the stupid jackasses like brothers, I would have kicked them out by now."

  “It’s okay, I know how to handle little boys,” Hedge said, smirking at me, “big boys too.”

  “I bet you could.”

  Hedge raised an eyebrow at my comment. Why could we act like normal functioning adults when other people were around, but we reverted to awkward flirty, no-filter teenagers when it was just the two of us?

  “So, what I was thinking was that I would come in for a few hours each day for the rest of the week,” Hedge started steering the conversation back to a more professional territory. “That way I can finish the assessment. Then I'll compile everything into a priority list, what needs doing now, what needs to be done sooner rather than later and what needs doing but can wait. I'll complete a costing on everything also. Then we can go over everything again, and we can agree on what to start with.”

  “I honestly don’t know how your head hasn’t exploded. I’m pretty impressed that you haven’t run screaming from the building.”

  "It's no huge deal, really and Jax is right, I do love doing this type of thing," lifting her shoulder in a shrug before clutching her hands together looking totally adorkable as she giggled, a sound that went straight to my cock. “Getting to organise this place is the best new job gift ever.”

  "Only you could get excited over the millions of things that need doing. I'm pretty sure Santa has a shorter list," I said, causing Hedge to giggle again.

  Oh, my God that sound, all light and tingling. Going. To. Kill. ME.

  I stretched my arms above my head so that I wouldn't reach out to tickle her just so that I could hear her giggle again.

  "Okay, let's leave the Grinch list for a while," I said as Hedge stood up going to the fridge to get a bottle of water, which gave me time to adjust myself discreetly.

  “I want you upstairs,” umm shit, not what I wanted to say. "So, I can have you upstairs." Stop it, think before you speak, "I meant I have to have you upstairs," again with the giggling, she was enjoying my awkward stumbling way too much. Taking a deep breath, I tried again, "let me take you upstairs so that I can show you the apartment."

  Chapter 13 Hedge

  I was finally getting my rhythm back, and everything for me has been coming up roses. It was as if all that I needed was for one wonderful thing to go my way and once that happened all the rest just fell into place. I had found my reason to get out of bed. I knew it wouldn't take long for me to get my fire back all I needed to do was discover the thing that gave me a spark.

  That spark came in the form of Barber Shop Ink and Memphis Blue.

  It's been a month since I started working for Memphis at Barber Shop Ink and it's been a whirlwind of activity, getting everything organised and updated. I've been mainly working at night after the boys have closed the shop.

  Once the shutters were pulled down over the front windows and door, I queue up my playlist and would go about my business without disturbing Cassidy or any of the guys. More importantly, I can get my work done without being interrupted by Davis and Bishop who spend any time they weren’t working, shamelessly flirting, trying to get my attention.

  Sorry boys, but I have no interest in childish games. I'm after something stronger, taller, more Mountain-Man-ish.

  Following the ‘almost kiss’ in the kitchen; Memphis took me upstairs to check out the apartment above the shop. It was more of a loft than a traditional apartment. The open floor plan was set out in an ‘L' shape and ran along the top of the building. The apartment was a little dusty from being closed-up for over twelve months, but otherwise, it was light and airy. Memphis told me that after his grandfather had passed away, the apartment had been cleared out, locked up and has been sitting disused ever since. Seeing the concerned look on my face, Memphis assured me that his Pops had passed away in the hospital, so there was no possibility of ghosts, but just in case I was planning on burning some sage, you know, just to be sure!

  Possible hauntings aside, I fell in love with the space on sight. The apartments open floor plan was massive and spacious. Redesigning the space and making it livable would not be a stretch as there were only a few amenities and it wouldn't take much to remove the tiny kitchenette and small bathroom.

  The tall wide windows at the front and a small balcony at the back that looked out over the river helped to bathe the apartment with natural light. It may have been a vacant space, but with all the light it felt warm and inviting.

  I stood looking around at the vast space, watching the dust motes dance in the sunlight and I could see the potential that the blank canvas offered. Excited anticipation bubbled in me for the first time in forever.

  Memphis leant against the wall, just inside the doorway. He stood with his long, powerful legs stretch out in front of him, with his ankles crossed. It really should be illegal for a person to look that effortlessly hot. His eyes followed me, cautiously watching for my reaction. He scrubbed a hand across his bearded cheek, which I had figured out, along with running his hand through the back of his hair, was a nervous tick.

  "I know it's not much," he started, indicating around the room with a wave of his hand, "and no one has used it for a while but it’s got to be better than sleeping on Jax’ lounge. As I said, you can have it rent free that is if you want it. No pressure, of course, I completely understand if you don't want it, it needs a lot of work, but it's yours if you want."

  He was looking at me like he was embarrassed that the apartment was just a bare empty room. I thought that if I weren't going to make it my home, it would make the perfect rehearsal space for a dance school.

  “Are you sure?” I asked. Memphis was nodding his reply, and I squealed a little on the inside. Finally, things were starting to look up. In the space of a few hours, I had been received a job offer and offered a new place to live. "Well then, definitely, thank you. I'll take it!" I declared excitedly, approaching him with a big smile.

  “Awesome,” Memphis replied, uncrossing his legs, widening his stance instinctively so that I could walk into him and he placed a hand on my hip anchoring me to him. "Then it's yours, and I want you to feel at home, so do whatever you like to make yourself comfortable."

  My mind was reeling from all the possibilities of a fresh start and what I could do to the loft to make it liveable. I felt the oppressive weight of the past few months lift from my soul and the warm, comforting feeling of ‘rightness' settled over me.

  Everything felt like it was working out the way it was supposed to. Serendipity had tapped me on the shoulder, like Cinderella's Fairy Godmother saying: "My darling girl, you fought hard and you have weathered the storm and survived everything that fate threw at you. Yes, you stumbled, and yes, you fell, and yes, you wanted to roll yourself up in a big ball and die, but you didn't. You got up, dusted yourself off and decided that the trials in your life are not what would define you and you would not perish under the weight of them. All that you see before you are your rewards for making it out the other side. Your path may have changed, this may not be the track you envisioned for yourself, but life is a challenge, an adventure. Accept the challenge and enjoy the adventure."

  I was standing in-between Memphis’s outstretched legs with his hand on my hip; his thumb drawing small slow light circles like this was something that we'd always done. I stood there letting the perfection of the moment seep in when a realisation hit me; this felt right. All of it felt so natural and perfect like it was meant to be.

  My new job as shop manager felt right. Renovating the apartment, moving in and living by the river felt right, it felt like home. Being here now like this with Memphis felt perfect.
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  Although nothing had happened apart from an almost kiss and a lot of PG13 touching, being with Memphis was comfortable, even if we were both cringe-worthily awkward around each other at times. It felt like we had an instant connection. The type of bond where you knew the other person for five minutes, but it felt like you had known them your whole life. I couldn't be sure but had a feeling; I hoped that maybe he felt the same way.

  There was no way that he could have misread our dorky, yet obvious, flirting. Flirting filled with bumbling, unintentional innuendo that only seemed to come out when we were alone. When other people were around for some unknown reason, we able to keep out shit together and be able to speak to each other without having our private thoughts spill out.

  The way he reached out to me, placing his hands on my hips felt natural, being in his arms felt right, like two puzzle pieces clicking together. That didn't mean that I was just going to swoon all over him and he wasn't going to have to work for it.

  Every woman wants to feel wanted, be made to feel special and that a man feels that she is worth going to the effort of wooing her. I may be a modern, independent, self-sufficient woman who believes that she does not need a man to make her feel her worth. But that doesn't mean that I don't want to be charmed, and it was a fact that I was struggling with, with his hands on my hips. His intoxicating scent enveloping me had my thoughts scrambling, and all I wanted to do was fall into the warm comfort of his arms and stay there.

  “I want you to be happy,” Memphis said, palming my other hip, pulling me further into his personal space.

  This type of thing didn't happen in real life, did it? Love, at first sight, wasn't real, people just don't meet and then boom they're in love. Not that I thought that I was in love I mean come on I've known Memphis for a couple of days, and we've only spent a few hours together. Our connection couldn't be this real this fast, could it?