“That’s different.”
“I think I can help.” Nick’s voice came from the direction of the bedroom. He stood at the edge of the kitchen, dressed and looking respectable, gorgeous, and confident.
Tara was going to kill him for interrupting. Or praise him in whatever way he wanted. She’d figure that out when they made it through this.
“Who are you?” Her mom asked.
“This is Nick. He’s my boyfriend,” Tara liked that way that tasted, and the way the corner of his mouth tugged up when he said it.
Mom looked at Nathan. “But, you two are back together. He’s right here.”
They weren’t quite back together, but one complication at a time. “My other boyfriend.”
“I can’t...” Mom shook her head and pushed her tea away.
“It’s hard to see, I know.” Nick crossed the room to join them as he spoke. “We think it’s wrong to let our eyes wander. We’re told our entire lives that no one is capable of things like this. I get where you’re coming from because I’ve been in your shoes. But, do you love both of your children?”
Tara’s mom bristled. “Of course.”
“And Tara’s capable of loving more than one person romantically. She’s intelligent, observant, so full of love, and was raised right.” Smooth as fuck, like always. “For her, being told she can’t share her affection is as difficult as you cutting your children out of your life.”
He really got it. Tara wanted to kiss him. She settled for covering his hand when he rested it on her shoulder.
“It’s not the same,” Mom argued.
“It is. Loving your children isn’t mandatory. For you it is, because that’s who you are. Other mothers and fathers, they’re not as understanding. They cut their children out of their lives without a second thought. But you accept them as they are. You love them both for what they are. You both choose to do that, and at the same time can’t help it. It’s who you are.
“And Tara living her life this way is who she is.”
Tara’s heart was ready to burst.
“I still don’t completely get it.” Mom sighed. “But that makes more sense, and I’m trying. I see how much this means to you, to Antonio. It’s going to take me some time to adapt, but I’m working on it. Give us another chance?”
Maybe they were empty words, but Tara’s Mom had never been a false promises kind of person. “We’ll work on it.”
Mom’s smile was bright and warm, and Tara had missed that. Her mom stood enough to wrap her in a hug and Tara squeezed back, tears of relief pricking her eyelids.
“Tell me what you need, anything, and I’ll get it for you. Whatever it takes to prove to you I mean this,” Mom said.
Tara didn’t need anything besides for her to keep on this path of acceptance.
“We could use something,” Nathan said.
Tara opened her mouth to stop him. This wasn’t the time. But it was exactly the time. And she’d ask for it anyway, this just seemed like a better time to get a positive answer.
“Anything.” Mom leaned in.
“There's a building a few kilometers away. The Russo place. We want to rent it for the shop since we can’t work here anymore. Do you think Dad could...”
“Of course. He will, and I’ll make sure he does. That lease is yours.”
They chatted for a few more minutes, before Mom excused herself. She hugged Nathan. “I’m glad you’re back.” Then turned to Nick. “It was lovely to meet you.”
“The pleasure was mine.” Nick extended his hand.
Mom pulled him into a tight hug as well. “I’m glad my baby girl has two sharp minds to keep her on her toes. She deserves that and more.”
“Yes, she does.” Nick squeezed back.
Tara’s mom turned to her. “I love you, a leanbh. Call us if you need anything. And as soon as you have ultrasound pictures, I have to see them.”
She saw her mom out and rejoined the men upstairs.
“I hope that was all right,” Nick said.
Tara would have asked him not to intercede if she’d known who was visiting. “No, but at the same time, yes. It worked out, so it’s hard to say it was a bad call.”
Maybe things were turning around.
Chapter Sixteen
As Nick had sat in the bedroom, trying his damnedest not to eavesdrop, Tara’s and Fiona’s voices warred for attention in his thoughts. He’d been fighting this because it wasn’t what he’d been taught. But when he stepped back, he couldn’t see any reason beyond societal expectation to stay mired in closed-mindedness. He was falling for—had fallen for?—Tara. His head told him it wasn’t possible for her to love two people, but his heart disagreed.
It wasn’t about sharing her with Nathan any more than he had to share her with her family. Each relationship was different.
He didn’t know if he’d done a great job of conveying that to Tara’s mother, and he probably shouldn’t have interfered. The revelation struck him so strongly, he had to help her understand if he could.
But Tara was smiling again. More and more. Since she came back with Nathan last night. Since her mother left this morning.
And Nick would do a hell of a lot to make that keep happening.
“Moving plans, let’s make them,” he said. “Be right back.” He vanished into the bedroom and returned with his laptop. “I’ll make notes, the two of you do that nifty-weird brain share thing that you do.”
The three of them were seated around the breakfast table, plates cleared away and fresh coffee in front of them. A hum of excitement hung in the air that Tara and Nathan were going to have a new place to set up shop.
Tara hadn’t gotten the call yet from her father’s friend, but she was certain it was coming.
“First things first, and very most important, you’re going to argue, and we’re not going to listen.” Nathan looked at Tara. “No heavy lifting for you.”
She rolled her eyes, but her amusement didn’t fade. “You’re right, I’m not listening. I’m not an invalid.”
Nick was with Nathan on this one. “We’ll have to make sure there are enough of us helping that it won’t come up.”
“I’ll call Antonio if that’ll make you happy,” Tara said with a laugh.
Nick had nothing but awe and admiration for what Tara and Nathan did with ink and art. This was his element, though. “We have several days of show to drop first. Even if he says we can move in right away, we have to pack, we have to schedule...” As he talked he opened a fresh spreadsheet and a new document, and started typing out the bullet points.
He knew from Parker’s contract that at the start of the competition, each channel defined what their show was about. Tara and Nathan would have set their own limits on content. “How strict are your requirements for what you have to air? Do you have to do so many tattoos or anything like that?”
“I’ll double check with Chloe, but I believe we’re pretty loose and open. Tattoos and tattoo related art, so as long as we get someone inked every month, the rest can be sketches,” Nathan said.
Tara winced. “It can be, but our biggest views come from the actual ink applications. We need variety.”
“Bring someone else in like you did with me. A friend. Someone you can say isn’t a customer.” Nick didn’t have their artistic eye, but he’d followed the entire competition, and he had a decent idea of what people were watching. Drama got the most hits. Then the unique and unexpected. “Do something big, across several other days, to fill in some of the other time.”
“Something big.” Tara pursed her lips. “Care to elaborate?”
Nick waved his hands. “I don’t know. A big thing. The kind of project that takes days. Unless you want to fabricate some sort of on-camera crisis.”
“I’m drama’d out for a long time.” Nathan’s chuckle was dry. “We could do a mural.”
“A tattoo based one?” Nick couldn’t picture it.
The way Tara’s eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped op
en implied she could. “Yes. We could something epic and insane. A marathon livestream to kick off the end of holiday break.”
“We’ll start with a rough structure, and let commenters dictate what direction we go in. I’m thinking alien dragon invasion.” Nathan reached to the shelf behind him and grabbed a notebook and a pencil. Apparently they had those things stashed everywhere. Smart.
And as much as Nick loved to watch them work, it needed to wait. “As much as I love the random word soup of that idea, no details yet. This is the plan. You have to save the plotting for later, or we’ll never get this done.”
“Meanie.” Tara gave him an exaggerated pout.
“That’s me.” Nick leaned across the table and nipped her bottom lip, then kissed away the bite.
Nathan cleared his throat. “Hey. Now who’s getting distracted?”
“Me. I’ll own it.” Nick sank back into his seat. “Marathon livestream is brilliant. Who can you tattoo if you need?”
“Justin’s always up for one more,” Tara said. “We’ve had him on before, so he’s not new, but the camera loves him.”
They plotted and planned for several hours. Nick loved every minute of it. There was a sliver of guilt that he didn’t have this same kind of enthusiasm for his own company. He shoved it aside. They were two entirely different entities.
“We should celebrate. Ring in the New Year in grand fashion, and toast anything and everything awesome from the last few days,” Nathan said when they took a break.
“With sparkling grape juice,” Nick added.
Tara let out a long sigh and sank in her seat. “You’re taking the fun out of everything.”
“With no reason for it at all.” Nick let the teasing bleed into his sarcasm.
A knock filtered up from downstairs.
“Oh come on. Really?” Tara shouted. This time her frustration was real and almost tangible. She groaned as she pushed back from the table.
Nick wasn’t sure if he should follow or not. Nathan stayed put, so he did the same.
“Fuck you, you fucking whore,” Tara’s yell carried upstairs.
Nick was on his feet and sprinting, Nathan by his side.
They found Tara in the main shop, leaning against the reception desk with her head in her hands. A letter sat next to her, stark against the dark grain of the desk.
“What happened?” Nathan asked.
She nodded at the paper. “It’s a notice of eviction, because I operated my business after my zoning permissions were revoked.”
“How do they know that?” Nick’s fury spiked white-hot. Why did they keep coming down on her like this?
“I don’t know.” She tugged on her braid. “They recognized the background from the video you were in? It doesn’t fucking matter. They can’t do this. I own the property.” She grabbed the phone from its cradle and dialed. “I’m getting a lawyer on the phone. I don’t care that it’s all but a holiday. I’ll pay extra. Whatever it takes to shut this bitch down.”
Nick exchanged glances with Nathan, who shrugged. Nick’s anger grew. He hated seeing her go through this, and hated even more that he couldn’t do anything to help.
She had a brief exchange in Italian with the person on the other end of the line, then hung up with a sigh. “He’s looking into it. He won’t have any answers for me until after the holiday.”
Nick wanted to wrap her up and chase the frustration and bullshit away. Too bad one wouldn’t lead to the other. He did know how to distract her for a little while though. “We can still go celebrate.”
“Really.” Tara’s tone was flat, and she shot him a withering gaze.
He stared back, unfazed. “Yes, really. This is the biggest load of crap ever, but everything that came before it is still worth toasting.”
Tara clenched her jaw, then her shoulders slumped. “All right. It’s got to be better than sitting around here and moping. I’ve spent too much time doing that recently.”
“Perfect.” Nick prayed Murphy’s Law didn’t make him regret this.
TARA HAD BEEN SKEPTICAL of Nick’s plan, but a night out was exactly what she needed. The cold night air kissed her hot face, and her cheeks ached from laughing so much. It was almost two in the morning, and the entire day and night had been amazing.
When the sun set, she’d been a little bummed that she couldn’t drink. With the company, she hadn’t needed it. Nick and Nathan made the night perfect without alcohol.
She unlocked the front door to let them all in.
This is two nights in a row Nathan will be here.
But it wasn’t like she was letting him move back yet. This was different.
It really isn’t.
She needed to pretend it was for now, and she wasn’t letting reason tell her otherwise.
“Your turn,” Nathan said to Nick as they made their way upstairs.
Nick laughed and waved him off. “Okay, but only because you went first.”
“Your hesitation means you’re embarrassed,” Tara teased. “Nathan’s not. He tells that story at parties for a laugh.”
Nick fell back on the couch, and pulled her into his lap. It was such a familiar and perfect gesture. She grabbed Nathan’s hand and tugged him down next to them, before sinking back into Nick and propping her legs up on Nathan’s.
“I’m not embarrassed, but I don’t see the point,” Nick argued.
“Then it won’t hurt to pick a story and share it.” Nathan rested his hand on Tara’s shins.
They were swapping awkward date stories, and Nick had done an almost masterful job of evading the topic.
He groaned, as if the entire thing caused him pain. “Fine. I’ll tell. It’s not even a great story.”
“It gets better each time you put it off,” Tara said. “At this point, you could say I spilled Sprite on her shoes, and it would be funny, because you’re making a big deal out of it.”
“And it’s not. Okay, fine. I was dating this girl early in college. I had my own apartment for the first time ever, and I thought I was the shit. So I know she’s staying the night, because I asked her. But apparently that was the last of my smarts when it came to that. Because we got back to my place after dinner, and turned on the TV.”
“Porn?” Nathan asked.
Nick winced. “Dragon Ball Z.”
Tara rested her head on his shoulder and trailed a finger up his arm. “Mmm... sexy.”
“I know. Totally. That’s not the awkward bit, though. I kept asking her are you ready for bed, thinking it was obvious I meant let’s go fuck. She kept telling me not yet, because she thought I wanted to go to sleep rather than screw. We went back and forth for three hours, until she was too tired and just went to sleep. Vegeta got more action that night than I did.”
“I think you holding out on telling that story is more embarrassing then the story itself,” Tara teased.
Nick drew his mouth up her neck, sending goosebumps skittering across her skin. “You should be grateful”—his hot breath teased her nerve endings—“I’ve improved my communication skills since then.”
She very much was. But this seemed like the perfect chance to have a little fun with it. “I’m going to need some proof.”
“Take your clothes off.”
Tara was about to protest at the lack of finesse, but he wasn’t talking to her.
“Excuse me?” Nathan asked.
A thrilling need spilled inside her. This was new, and she was curious.
“Stand up.” Nathan gestured with his finger. “Take your clothes off.”
Nathan’s sigh was exaggerated. “All right, Mr. Bossy.” He extracted himself from Tara’s legs, and stepped back a few meters. He wasn’t Magic Mike, but the playful way he stripped out of a piece of clothing at a time was enough to raise Tara’s temperature a few degrees.
Nathan finished and stood in front of them, sexy, naked, inked, and with a half-hard cock. “Did you have a plan beyond this?”
“Be right back,” Nick whispered
to Tara as he shifted her from his lap. He crossed the room to join Nathan, and kissed him hard. He gripped Nathan’s cock, stroking lightly, and pressed their bodies together.
Tara didn’t know if the whimper she heard was hers or Nathan’s.
“Don’t move,” Nick said.
Tara was intrigued, and sharp tingles danced under her skin.
Nick strolled into the kitchen, and returned with one of the hardback chairs from the dining set. He placed it behind Nathan. “Sit.” His belt made a delicious zip as he yanked it from its loops.
Nathan dropped into the seat.
Nick bound his arms behind him. “Don’t go anywhere unless one of us says you can.”
Christ. Tara was almost dripping with desire.
Nick returned to her, and tugged her to her feet. She didn’t wait for him to act, she kissed him hungrily, dancing her tongue around his. She lost track of who was tearing off whose clothing. She was pretty sure she heard at least a couple of actual tears. As they lost themselves in each other, she caught the occasional glimpse of Nathan.
He licked his lips occasionally, but mostly just watched with famished eyes. His cock stood at attention, eager and waiting.
Nick’s bare skin slipped and dragged against hers, building delicious friction. He dropped onto the couch, and pulled her into his lap.
Foreplay was great, but that had been the last hour or so of her life. Plus the last few days since Nick arrived. She wasn’t in the mood to wait any longer. She dropped onto his shaft, moaning as he impaled her.
The build-up was fast and frantic, with Nick slamming against the back of her legs, and her grinding back.
Orgasm crept up on her unexpectedly. She rarely came from penetration. But with each thrust, Nick hit her inside at the right angle. That, combined with knowing Nathan watched everything, was an exquisite layer added to her desire.
She dug her nails into his shoulders as she climaxed. She didn’t want to ease up, even as her pleasure ebbed.
Nick came a moment later, pounding hard, and groaning.
As he slowed to a stop, silence hummed in her ears.
Nathan’s whimpering sigh wove into the stillness rather than disrupting it. She should give him something fun, for being such a tasty observer.
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