“It seems so surreal to me. We cannot go back to just friends if this doesn’t work. That fine line has been stepped over.” He stuffed his hands in his back pockets and rolled his eyes toward the ceiling.
“You know Helen sensed something a while back.” I stepped toward him, and he looked down at me, his brown eyes glistening.
“She did?” He didn’t look convinced.
“She told me something was going on whether I chose to accept it or not.” I wrapped my arms around his waist, and he smiled down at me.
“Well, good. I thought you were too good for Aaron as it was,” he laughed, pressing his lips to my forehead.
“Let’s see where this goes. Worst case scenario: I die in battle.” I meant for it to be a joke, but a coldness burst through my heart. I could die in combat.
“I don’t want to think about that,” he cringed. “You want to go with the flow, so we will do just that and see what happens. We don’t have to be exclusive now; we can just casually date.”
I laughed. “Casually dating means you can see whomever you want.”
“Well, I may have to take this new girl out to get her to trust me.” He poked my side, and I jumped.
“I don’t want to think about that,” I said through clenched teeth. Sadly, I knew he was telling the truth.
I pulled up the map on my phone, and we walked hand and hand toward the destination. In no time we arrived, and I was nervous. We had no idea what we were going to find. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, trying to open myself up to anything. I had felt an increase in power when Helen showed up at Adam’s this last April – an uncontrollable desire to hug her, and for a time, a need to punch her in the face for touching Adam. Now I felt nothing, not even a cold chill. I looked at Adam and shook my head. The first place we went to had been a bust.
“The next place is not even a mile up the road,” he pointed to our left and frowned.
“I was hoping that we would be able to find her on the first try. You know, like maybe I had some Warden intuition that would tell me where she is.” I took his hand in mine, winding my fingers in his.
“Maybe, you will. Who knows what will happen with the next place?” He squeezed my hand, and we kept walking toward the next address.
“Do you think this is going to work?” he asked me.
“I don’t know. All I know is that if I feel her, she’s going to feel me.” I sighed. This was turning out to be much harder than I thought.
“How about this – when it comes into sight I will go in and take a look. You said she has red hair, right?” We were getting close to the next location; I could see the sign from where we were.
“Yeah. That’s all I know about her,” I groaned. Nick had been incredibly vague with her description. We went into this on blind intuition, hoping there would be a sign to tell me we were on the right track.
“How about you go in first, and I will follow behind you. Maybe if I act like I can’t feel anything she won’t be so apt to run.” I gripped his hand tighter; I didn’t want to have to let him go.
“All right, but at some point, I have to look available.” He laughed as I unwillingly dropped his hand and let him cross the street to the tattoo shop, with me biting my bottom lip. I was going to give him ten minutes, and if he didn’t come back out, I would go in.
I had not been standing there for more than five minutes when I felt the air shift.
“Hey, pretty thing.” A man with more piercings in his face than I could count said. “Never seen a thing like you around here before.”
I rolled my eyes and looked at him. “I’m sixteen,” I lied. The last thing I wanted was for some perv to hit on me while I waited.
“Age is just a number,” the man cooed, stepping closer. I could smell the alcohol on his breath.
“Ever heard the saying, ‘sixteen will get you twenty?” I groaned. My fingers were starting to twitch, and a desire to devour his soul was creeping up my limbs.
“If you are willing, I’m game.” He was circling me. This was not a smart move. He had no idea who he was messing with.
“Trust me, I would not be willing,” I moaned, clenching my fists. It was taking everything in my power to control the urge.
“Well, that can be arranged too.” He reached out and touched me. This was his ultimate mistake!
My left arm shot out, grabbing the man by the throat. I spun around and threw him into the wall behind me, holding him almost a foot off the ground. My eyes burned, and I saw the fear form on his face.
“My suggestion would be for you to leave me alone,” I hissed, clenching his throat just a little tighter until he coughed, squirmed, and blinked.
“Ok,” he choked as I released my fingers and lowered him to the sidewalk. “What the hell are you?”
“Your worst nightmare,” I spat, not taking my eyes off him until he was safely around the corner.
“You know next time just use pepper spray.” I heard a female laugh, and I turned to look at her. When our eyes met, there was electricity, and I felt like the fire was going to explode from my skin.
“You’re her!” I screeched, a smile on my face.
“I could be. Come on; you can come in the shop for a bit. I work across the street.” She took me by the shoulder and led me inside. Adam looked up at me and smiled. I waved shyly at him and mouthed that this was her.
“Oh, you two are together, huh,” she said, looking between the two of us.
“Yeah. We weren’t sure which shop you worked in, so I came in first to find out,” Adam answered, standing up and walking toward us.
“Yeah, Mike here called me to let me know I had a customer.” She laughed. “So how did you hear about me?”
“A friend,” Adam choked.
“Great!” She looked back at me. “Your girlfriend here is quite the muscle woman. But by the looks of you, that asshole was lucky he got the girlfriend.”
Adam looked at me and blinked. “She’s not my girlfriend.”
That seemed to perk her attention, and she looked back at him. I felt a pain in my chest, but I knew this is how it was supposed to be. If my eyes were not deceiving me, there was an instant attraction forming on both sides.
“I’m sorry, I just assumed.” She blushed.
There was an awkward silence between the three of us.
“So, who’s going first?” she asked with a huff.
“Dawn? How about you go?” Adam asked, looking at me and narrowing his eyes. He was giving me time to talk to her.
“You have something in mind, Dawn?” she asked as we all walked back to a booth with a bunch of pointy objects. I never liked needles.
“Wings,” I said longingly. Krista and Helen both had wings. If I couldn’t have the real ones, I would settle for a pair drawn on my back.
“Wings, huh.” She looked at me quizzically.
“Yeah.” I smiled.
“I think that is a great idea,” Adam concurred with a pat on the back.
“Where do you want them?” she asked, taking a seat, and getting her stuff together.
“On my back between my shoulder blades.” I felt like my skin was going to fall off my bones just to avoid being penetrated by the needles. I looked at her arms, tattooed up to her shoulders. They were exquisite. “Did you do those?”
“Some of them, yes. Others I had done by co-workers.” She held her arms out for me to see. Out of all the intricate drawings, it was the two on her wrists that got my attention. A praying angel with a halo and a kneeling demon with stubby horns. This had to be her; there was no question.
“Well then, I need you to undo the top of your dress and lower it to your waist,” she instructed, noticing my intent stare at the two tattoos. She lowered her arms and rubbed her wrists. She looked at Adam and bat her large green eyes. “Can you close that curtain behind you?”
Chapter 8
Wings
I reached back to undo the zipper of my dress when Adam came up behind me. He
pulled the zipper down slowly, his fingers lingering briefly on my skin, and I shivered. I let the bodice drop to my waist and did as instructed. I sat in probably the most uncomfortable chair ever, as she took alcohol wipes to my back.
“All right, Dawn. This is going to hurt a little at first, but it should numb out after the first few minutes.” I felt a chill run up my spine. I could feel my palms starting to sweat as I anticipated the moment the needle would first touch my skin.
Weren’t they supposed to put a stencil on my back before beginning?
“You going to freehand?” Adam asked. I could hear the worry in his voice.
“Yeah, I never stencil. It’s like a gift, I guess.” She laughed melodically and put the needle to my skin.
“One demon and one angel wing,” I requested, clenching my teeth together.
“That is what I figured.” She laughed. “I saw you notice the ones on my wrists. I take it you have a thing for Celestial power.”
I clenched when I felt the needle hit my skin. She was right – after a few moments, the pain numbed away.
“Rose!” A guy called through the curtain.
“Yeah, Mike,” the girl answered, turning off the needle of doom.
“You got a phone call.” He peeked around the corner and smiled at me. I reached up and wrapped my arms around my chest.
“Tell them I will have to call them back. I’m with a customer,” she groaned.
“All right, but you know in twenty minutes he’s just going to call again.” The man she called Mike closed the curtain, just as she turned on the machine again, and picked up where she left off.
Rose. Her name was Rose. So pretty, but not fitting for a Water Warden. I had to make sure to keep her name in the front of my memory. With all the beings that I had met here recently, I had an issue keeping track of who was who.
I am not sure how long I sat in that chair, staring ahead of me as she worked silently on my back. When she turned off the machine, I thought she was taking a break. Maybe her hand had cramped up, and she needed to take a second to let it breathe. Or perhaps she messed up, and my back looked like a canvas of kindergarten doodles.
“That looks awesome,” Adam gasped, walking to my right, and looking at her work. “You have an amazing technique. I love the embellishments you added.”
She laughed at his compliment.
“Wash your hair in the sink or under the faucet – do not get this wet for any reason; at least for a few days. If it starts to itch you can have your handsome friend here, put some lotion on it.” Rose instructed as she covered the artwork with several pieces of gauze.
Did she call him handsome?
I was going to kick Nick for having this great, excellent idea of his. First Helen and now Rose!
“Yeah, I had to do that with mine,” he laughed. I could tell it was forced, but in a way, I think he enjoyed this conversation.
“Who did yours?” she asked as I pulled my dress back up and waited for someone to help me with the zipper.
“His name is Tony – he does work up in Midvale.”
I was still waiting and slowly getting more and more impatient.
“Tony Mendez?” she asked.
Again, still waiting! I cleared my throat.
“Oh shit, sorry Dawn,” Adam said, pulling the zipper of my dress up and returning to his conversation with Rose. “Yeah. You know him?”
“I worked with him when he owned a parlor in Phoenix a few years back. Great guy. Does awesome art.” I was officially invisible. “Can I see what he did for you?”
“Yeah.” I turned and watched Adam roll up the sleeve of his shirt, revealing the beautiful flaming broadsword.
“Oh yes, that’s Tony’s work. That is just beautiful. Why the hell would you seek me out if you have that?” she laughed.
“Well, we aren’t exactly in Midvale. Besides, I heard your work was stellar. Judging by the awesomeness of Dawn’s tattoo, I would say that I was told correctly.”
He was flirting! What the hell was happening?
“So, what can I do?”
The way Rose’s mouth contorted into a seductive smile made me irritated. Great, now I was going to have to fight the constant jealousy again. I had just had the realization that was how I felt towards Helen.
“I have a rather large project. It may take several days to do,” he said softly.
“I have several days of openings.” I watched her eyes soften, and her pupils dilate. She was totally into him.
“I want all four elements on my back. Earth, wind, fire, and water; but I want them connected somehow.” Adam was turning on the charm, something I had never seen him do before.
“Take off your shirt – let me see what I have to work with. What I might do is take a couple of pictures and create some sketches for you. You can come in tomorrow, and we can choose something you like.” She looked at me and smiled. “Where did you find this boy?”
“Choir,” I said dryly as Adam reached the bottom of his shirt, pulled it up, and over his head.
Ok, so I hadn’t noticed any changes in his face, but there was a definite change in his body. His abs were more defined, his biceps appeared larger, and he had more muscle tone than the last night we had spent together. I had to choke back my shock, and I put my fingers to my lips to control the amount of drool that was falling out.
“You don’t look like a choirboy.” Her eyes were wide as she had him turn around. I watched her size him up, her eyes lingering on his ass. Her eyebrows raised, and she smiled.
OH JESUS! I am going to die right here in this tattoo parlor.
“Yeah, we have more than enough room to work with here.” She reached up and touched right between his shoulder blades. “I could do a good six to seven inches in height if you want. Let me get my camera, and I will snap a few shots.” She left the area.
“Seriously,” I said, my eyes widening. It had been hard to maintain no reaction to his body changes. I still felt that it was written all over my face.
“What?” he asked shrugging.
“This.” I pointed at his chest. “This is – well, this is different.”
“So, what you are saying is Heaven does the body good,” he joked, blowing me a kiss.
“Most def.” I couldn’t take my eyes off him. However, I had to avert them when I heard her coming back.
“All right, stand facing the curtain and give me two minutes to get my shots.” Adam did as he was told, there were a few clicks, and she was done. “You can put your shirt back on now.” I know she didn’t want him to. Her voice may have said one thing, but her eyes said something entirely different.
“You have a bathroom I can use?” He smiled at her.
“Yeah, it’s just around the corner.” She put the camera down and looked back at me.
Adam left the curtained space leaving me and Rose alone.
“Thank you,” I said, trying to sound appreciative. In a way, I was – the girl gave me wings!
“I should be thanking you. That is one hell of a man you brought in here,” she said, waving her hand in front of her face. “They don’t grow that in the cities around here.”
“He’s a good guy.” I tried to sound uninterested, but inside I was harboring images of ripping her pretty pierced face off its skull.
“Is he single?” She was rubbing hand sanitizer from her fingers to her elbows.
“As single as they come.” I strained not to sound venomous. I had to sound casual. We had just recently decided that we were casually dating. I already knew what that entailed.
“If I give him my number do you think he will call?” She was making casual conversation with me.
“Yeah. I can almost guarantee that he will.” I forced a beaming smile.
“Great,” she sang. I wanted to punch her, but I couldn’t; everything was going as planned. If she felt anything in my presence, she wasn’t letting me know.
When Adam returned, she did just as she said. She walked up to him and
touched his arm, asking if he had his phone on him. She used the excuse that she was giving him her number so he could call about the tattoo. Of course, she threw in that he could call her anytime. In the same breath, she suggested they could go out and have drinks. Little did she know that he was only eighteen, which made me laugh. We said our farewells to Rose, and I thanked her again for the fresh ink.
“If you want anything else you know where to find me. You have the ideal skin for this. I think that tattoo is going to look amazing.” She hugged me, making sure not to touch the tender spots, and we were off.
“You could have been a little less obvious,” I groaned when the summer air hit our faces.
“What, you jealous or something?” he teased as we crossed the street and walked down Commerce toward our apartment.
“A little,” I sighed. I hated sounding defeated; in this case, I felt my heart was going to come out my throat.
“That’s cute,” he said softly.
“How is that cute?” I demanded, feeling a tinge of anger. Was he seriously finding my turmoil childish?
“It’s how I felt when I saw you and Aaron together.” We were far enough away from the tattoo parlor that he reached over and took my hand in his. “With Wesley, it was different. I knew you loved him; it was all over your face. I couldn’t be jealous of that. Aaron wasn’t fitting for you. So, imagine my relief when you told me it was just a Claim.”
“I didn’t know, Adam.” I squeezed his hand. The night felt amazing on my skin. Even though my back was tender, it felt wonderful.
“How could you know? I pretty much kept it to myself till prom.” We crossed Commerce and headed down Ervay.
“You hungry?” My stomach had started to rumble as soon as we left the parlor.
“I could eat. What are you thinking?” He looked around at the shops along the walk.
“I thought we could order a pizza or something.” As great as Harrisville was, it was missing one major luxury – pizza.
“That sounds like a plan.” I heard his stomach growl, and we both laughed.
****
The pizza was amazing. Probably the best I had ever eaten. Dominos had gone out of their way to make their crust super garlicky. I put my plate down and heaved a sigh of happiness.
Wild Fire (Wardens Series Book 3) Page 6