Barber Shop Ink: Always Blue in Memphis

by Penny Blush

  Memphis pulled me back into his arms giving me a promise-filled, passionate kiss. "Go to bed, Baby Girl." He said kissing me again, "I'll be up when we're finished."

  “If ... If you’re sure, I don’t want you to feel pressured or obligated.”

  His kiss seared my lips again, "Baby Girl, I'll be right up once I have finished with Darcy. I'm going to go to sleep with you in my arms, and I plan on waking up the same way. Okay?"

  “Okay,” I whispered, smiling against his lips.

  I waved goodbye to Darcy as I passed the kitchen where he was on the phone and making a cup of coffee. I went upstairs and got ready for bed. I seriously considered leaving my dress on so that Memphis could help me out of it, but decided to leave that little fantasy for another day and headed into a hot shower instead.

  I crawled into bed, wrapping myself around the Memphis scented pillow and drifted off.

  Sometime later I stirred as Memphis climbed into bed wrapping his arms around me pulling me to him.

  “Shhh, Sweetness go back to sleep,” he whispered.

  “You all done?” I mumbled, rolling over placing a small kiss on his heart so that I could make his chest my pillow.

  “Yeah, Baby Girl all done. I took pictures so you can see,” he chuckled pulling me back down onto his chest when I sat up starting to reach for his phone. “You can look in the morning. Go back to sleep.” He kissed the top of my head, running his fingers up and down my side, the soothing rhythm sending me back to sleep.

  I woke up how I went to sleep, wrapped in the warm comfort of Memphis' secure, tattoo-covered arms. I lay there being gently rocked by his deep, even breathing and soothed by his soft rumbling snores. I used to get irritated by Thomas’s snoring; it was like nails down a chalkboard. But with Memphis, it was a very manly rumbling purr that calmed me and soothed my soul.

  It had to have been after two in the morning when Memphis finally crawled into bed, so I didn’t want to disturb him. Instead, I lay there studying the artwork on his skin. Memphis had one arm that was covered in Japanese style tattoos. Cherry blossoms, a warrior, a geisha, a Katana sword and representations of the four elements - earth, water, air and fire. His left arm decorated in Biomechanical designs with components of machinery shown inside the design. The levers, rods, gears, wires, pipes, within the design, gave a three-dimensional effect that made it look like the machine parts blended with his flesh. The intricate detail was stunning and had undoubtedly taken hours to complete.

  There was a blue butterfly that looked like it was hovering above a pair of barber scissors, surrounded by stars that were for his grandparents, with their birthdates and dates of their passing underneath. A devil mask surrounded by flames was on his right thigh; with the angel of death on his calve.

  I traced the designs with my fingers and eyes, he truly was a human canvas, and I could have studied him all day. It was not just the beautiful artwork that I could study; it was the canvas itself. Memphis was all muscle, but it was not the type of muscle you get from hours spent dedicated at the gym, they were muscles you get from good hard, honest work. I gently lifted his hand turning it over to study it; he could be so gentle with these big, strong hands. He had real man’s hands that looked like they should be cutting timber or pulling rigging on a ship or wrestling a wild bear!

  “Morning Beautiful,” Memphis mumbled sleepily.

  “Morning Baby,” I replied, linking his fingers with mine, kissing the back of his hand.

  “What, ya doing?”

  “Just looking,” I replied, tilting my head up to give him a quick kiss. “Your artwork is amazing, so intricate and detailed; I could look at it for hours and still find something new to study."

  I took his arm in my hands again, the one with the biomechanical tattoos, twisting it this way and that to see how the design and colours danced with his muscles.

  “Are you done looking?” Memphis asked, tilting my chin back up, bringing my lips to his. I turned in his arms, draping my knee over his hip, kissing him back. His hands grabbed my hips, shifting me until I was lying on top of him. “That’s better,” he said, kissing me.

  I could feel his growing erection through the thin cotton of my sleep shorts. I rotated my hips, and he hissed my name, his tongue seeking mine again. His hands slid up my sides, taking my tank top with them. We broke the kiss long enough to pull my shirt the rest of the way off. Our lips met again in a hungry kiss. He slipped his hands into the back of my sleep shorts, squeezing my ass, making me gasp and giggle as we continued kissing. With Memphis's help, I managed to wriggle out of my shorts. My hand was sliding between us so that I could stroke him; I could feel him getting harder through the thin cotton.

  "Now to get rid of these pesky boxer-briefs," I said, smiling against his lips, his hand slipped between my thighs.

  AC/DC Hells Bells started playing somewhere in the apartment, at the rattling vibration of the ring tone Memphis let out a frustrated moan but kept kissing me.

  “God, damn it all to hell, stupid fucking phone,” he growled.

  “Ignore it,” I said kissing him, my tongue dancing with his, my hand continuing to glide up and down his hardness.

  "Fuck, I am sorry," Memphis said kissing me with frustrated passion. "Hedge, if I don't answer the damn phone, he'll … They'll," he kept catching himself before he said too much. He leant over the edge of the bed groping for his jeans, digging out his phone.

  "What!" he answered angrily. "It's eight in the morning… I, just… Yes okay… I said I'd be there… Yes, I heard… It's the same fucking threat." Growling in angry frustration, he ended the call throwing his phone on top of his pants, grinding the heels of his palms into his eyes, sighing heavily.

  “Memphis, what’s going on?” I asked quietly.

  “Fuck it all to hell. I swear that fucker has a God damn camera on me every time I get you alone.”

  “Baby, what are you talking about?” I asked sitting up, covering myself with the bed sheet. “What’s happened? Who was that? What did they want?” He didn’t answer, so I pulled his hands from his face. “Memphis, please talk to me.”

  “I’ve got to go,” he said flatly.

  “Where Memphis? Where do you have to go at eight in the morning?”

  “Hedge, Sweetness I would tell you if I could, but just trust me okay, I have everything under control. You’re safer if I don’t tell you.” He kissed me again before rolling out of bed and heading into the bathroom.

  “What is that supposed to mean?” The only reply was the soft click of the bathroom door closing.

  Moments later he came out fully dressed, “I’ll be as quick as I can.” He kissed me again and left.

  I watched his back stiffen, his shoulders tense and his hands clenching into fists as he walked down the hall towards the door. I growled out my own frustration flopping back onto the bed.

  "Memphis, what have you gotten yourself into?

  Chapter 28 Memphis

  I hated having to leave her just as much as I hated having to lie to her. Not that I was lying to her it was more like omitting the truth, which let’s face it, was just as bad.

  AC/DC Hells Bells had started playing while Hedge had her hand on my cock.

  “Ignore it,” she said, in between kisses, her hand gliding up and down my hardness.

  "Fuck. I am so, sorry Hedge," I growled in frustration, kissing her, "If I don't answer the phone, he'll… They’ll…"

  Shit – fuck –shit!

  I’ve got to be more careful. I was so close to saying more than I should. It was bad enough that Jax knew what was going on and I didn’t want any of the bullshit involving Vex to touch Hedge. I need to keep her far away from my mess. I must keep her safe. Cursing under my breath, I leant over and grabbed my phone from my jeans on the floor.

  “What!?” I answered angrily, my civility filter well and truly non-existent.

  “That’s not a very polite way to answer the phone, Memphis,” Vex replied.

  “It�
�s eight in the morning …”

  "I don't give a fuck what time it is, whether I'm on the phone or in your face, you will show me respect. Got it?"

  Respect! How about I respect-the-shit-out of you with my fist? I thought, taking a deep breath, trying to get myself under control.

  "I just …"

  “I don’t care. Memphis, be here in forty minutes,” Vex instructed.

  I wanted to argue. God did I want to fight him. I wanted to tell Vex that he could shove his demands up his ass but I knew that if I did it would only make matters worse.

  Grinding my back teeth, I agreed, "Yes. Fine …"

  “Don’t give me attitude you little shit, just be here,” His patience wearing thin. “Get your ass here within the next forty minutes or do I need to send the boys to fetch you?”

  "I said I'd be there …"

  I was starting to get seriously pissed off with being cut off, by that arrogant prick. I wanted to say that if he shut the fuck up and got off the phone, I could have been half way there by now – but I kept that to myself.

  “Did you hear me? I don’t like having to repeat myself.”

  “Yes, I heard …”

  The motherfucker cut me off again.

  "You now have thirty minutes, get your sorry ass here Memphis, or I'll send the boys down to your depressing little shop, and they can have some fun with the broads you have working there before they burn it to the ground. With you inside. The choice is yours.”

  God, he really needed some new material. Not that I didn’t think that he wouldn’t follow through with his threats, but he was like a broken record.

  “It’s the same fucking threat ….”

  That fucking fucker hung up on me, completely cutting me off again. Growling, I angrily jabbed the end button, squeezing the phone hard like I wanted to do to that rat bastard's neck. I threw the phone on top of my pants so that I wouldn’t throw it at the wall, flopping back on the pillow, grinding the heels of my hands into my eyes.

  “Memphis, what’s going on?" Hedge asked quietly, as she rested a delicate hand over my heart.

  “Fuck it all to hell. I swear that fucker has a God damn camera on me. Every time I get you alone…” I said out loud not thinking.

  And of course, Hedge picked up on the fact that I had let my guard down and spoken before thinking.

  “Baby, what are you talking about?” Hedge asked covering herself with the bed sheet as she sat up, continuing with her rapid-fire questions. “Who was that? What did they want? What’s happening?”

  There was no way that I could answer any of her questions without sounding like I was trying to hide something from her. I stayed silent, rubbing at my eyes and face again. Then I felt her soft, delicate hands on my face, turning it towards her. "Memphis, please talk to me."

  “I’ve got to go,” I muttered avoiding her eyes.

  “Where Memphis? Where do you have to go at eight in the morning?” She asked frustrated, slamming her fist on the pillow.

  “Hedge, Sweetness I would tell you if I could, but just trust me okay, I have everything under control. You’re safer if I don’t tell you.”

  I kissed her again, hating myself for putting the look of fear and doubt in her eyes. I kissed her again, rolling out of bed, gathering up my clothes going into the bathroom to hide, from her look of hurt and confusion.

  “What is that supposed to mean?” I heard her softly ask as I closed the bathroom door.

  The pain and uncertainty in her voice were killing me, it was like a knife twisting in my gut, it was my fault, and I would take any punishment and the pain that it would cause to be able to take that look from her eye. I stood in the bathroom, where I was hiding like a coward. I was a coward; there was no way that I could look at her while getting ready to leave her without explanation. The man that looked back at me in the mirror looked tired and bone weary, on the verge of defeat, he was not a man I recognised.

  I was disgusted with myself and angry that I had let things with Vex get this bad and affect my life the way it had. I knew the guys from the shop were getting suspicious and annoyed with me having to run out all the time. Cassidy had stopped asking what was happening every time I called asking her to push back my appointments because I had to ‘take care of something’.

  “I’ll be back as quick as I can,” I said, kissing her quickly before leaving her alone in bed.

  As I got to the front door, then I heard her ask, “Memphis, what have you gotten yourself into?”

  I’m not entirely sure, Baby Girl, but I promise I will figure a way out of this, I silently replied locking the apartment door behind me.

  I dealt with Vex and his goons as quickly as I could, returning to the shop in the hope of spending more time in bed with Hedge, but unfortunately for me, it was not to be.

  I walked in the back door of the shop, and the sound of giggling, very female giggling greeted me. I followed the sound to find Hedge up, dressed, looking glamorous as ever in a pair of high-waisted long black pants, held up by black suspenders, purple heels and a skin-tight silver-grey silk top that clung to her curves. Her hair piled on top of her head with a few soft tendrils hanging loose, the artful creation held in place by an oversized purple hibiscus flower. She was once again at work in the front window, and this time the shade was still closed and with Cassidy in the barber chair. I stood just out of view, watching her work. She was confident and graceful. I could have stood there watching for hours.

  “Baby, you going to stand there all-day gawking or are you going to come in and say hi?” She asked.

  How she knew I was there, I didn’t know; she hadn't looked up from where she was painting colour onto Cassidy’s hair.

  “I was enjoying watching you work,” I said, pushing off the wall I leant against, walking over, giving her a kiss on the cheek. “Good Morning, again, Baby Girl,” I moved behind her, placing my hands on her hips watching her work, “morning Cass.”

  "Hey Memph," Cassidy replied, smiling at me with a Cheshire cat grin like she was clued in on some joke that I was blind to.

  “So, what exactly is going on here?” I asked, watching Hedge weave the pointed tail of a combed through Cassidy’s hair before picking up a piece of foil putting in under the section of hair and then painting on blue gloop.

  "I'm just colouring Cassidy's hair for her, I hope you don't mind me using the shop again," she said, looking over her shoulder at me. "I'll make sure everything is all cleaned up before Barber Shop Ink opens."

  “Sweetness its fine, really, I'm glad the chair is getting some use," I gave her a quick kiss, tilting my chin towards Cassidy's head. "What I meant was, what are you doing to Cass’s hair. You going to go blue this time, Kid?” I asked.

  Both the girls laughed at me, Cass looking at me through the mirror in front of her like I was the biggest idiot that she had seen.

  “No!” She laughed again.

  “No Baby, I’m lightening her hair so that the colour will be brighter,” Hedge answered.

  “You’ve lost me,” I said, taking a seat in the other barber chair to watch my girl work.

  “The blue is a lightening agent, like bleach, but less harsh on the hair, it will lighten Cassidy’s hair up but only in the sections that I have weaved out and foiled so that when the colour is applied it will be brighter in these sections only.”

  It was still all Dutch to me, but I smiled and nodded like it meant something. “What colour are you going this time?” I asked Cass.

  “Magenta!” She replied excitedly.

  “Magenta?” I asked trying to figure out what the colour would look like on her.

  “Yeah, it’s like a pinkie-purple colour,” she explained.

  "I know what colour Magenta is," I said, rolling my eyes. I may be a boy, but I'm not a total dumb ass, working with colour every day, I know what Magenta looks like. "I was just trying to figure out what it would look like …." I waved my hand in a circular motion around her head.

  “It …
It will look good, right Hedge?” She asked looking back at Hedge in the mirror, looking a little panicked.

  “It is going to look amazing!” Hedge said confidently. “It’s the perfect colour for you. It’s going to bring out the blue in your eyes and make them sparkle and with the cut, we talked about that will frame your face, you, my darling Cassidy, are going to look super-hot. You'll be fighting the boys off with a stick." She winked at Cass then looked at me, "Memphis, you might want to see about hiring some extra security for the shop.”

  The girls giggled again, the sound of Hedge laughing, giggling and being happy made my heart lighten and the stress of dealing with Vex lessen.

  “You run the change past Jax yet?” I asked smirking; I couldn’t help but tease, knowing that I was kicking a hornet’s nest.

  “What? What does Jaxon have to do with anything?” Cass replied, with a phoney, exaggerated laugh, her face blushing deeply.

  “Who cares what Jax thinks?” Hedge asked giving me a look that said I need to leave Cass alone and if I didn’t I was going to be in trouble. Bring it Baby Girl. I love it when she gets feisty.

  "You know he's sweet on you, right?"

  Jax and Cassidy are beyond enamoured with each other. They just had to stop dancing around their poorly hidden feelings, open their eyes and see what was right in front of them.

  “What?!” No, he’s not,” Cass scoffed, and then quietly adding, “is he?" Her ears were glowing pink.

  I just raised an eyebrow at her and if that eyebrow could have spoken it would have said: "Don't play the fool kid. He likes you; you like him. Just admit it. You'll both be a lot happier when you do.”

  “Baby, don’t you have some paperwork or something you could be doing?” Hedge asked changing the subject and letting me know that I needed to leave them both alone.

  “Fine, fine, I’ll leave you ladies to it. I can’t wait to see what it looks like Cass your hair is going to look so beautiful."

  “How do you know?” She asked.

  "Because you’re incredible and Hedge is phenomenal, so there's no way that your hair wouldn’t be astounding."