by Hart, Eve R.
“Settled?” she asked with a snort. “Girl, you’ve been here for months, if you aren’t settled by now you’re never gonna be.”
“Well—”
“Well, nothing,” she said cutting me off. “Stop pushing everyone away, stop sitting at home because you’re scared of all the things that might happen. Stop hiding, because what is the point of being free if you’re not going to take advantage of it?”
I huffed because there wasn’t a comeback I could think of that sounded good enough to toss out at her. She was right. At some point, I had to stop using my past as an excuse to wither away in the dark all alone.
“And go spend some time with Rob,” she said with a sad smile still going on about my uncle. “I suspect he needs it just as much as you do.”
“Well, if he needs it so bad, then maybe you should go over there,” I said, tone full of playful sass.
She dropped her gaze and after a long second, her head shook a couple of times.
What was that about?
Before I could even try to understand, she lifted her head, face her normal mask of hardass boss bitch perfection.
God, I loved her.
I wanted to be like her, yeah, I did.
She was tough. She didn’t take shit from anyone. She was successful and she did it all by herself. She brought herself up from where she came from and made life bow down to her. I wasn’t saying it was easy. Trust me, it wasn’t. I’d heard the story of her life a few times. But hearing it only made me prouder to stand by her side and really damn lucky to have her in my life.
After all, if it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be here standing in this half-done shop waiting to take on the world. Or the slice of the ink needed here. Hey, it was a big deal to me. I’d busted my butt for over two years to get here. To become the person I was right at this moment.
“Well, this shop isn’t going to get itself ready for opening,” she said, a small smile kicked up the corner of her lips.
“Yeah, yeah,” I replied with a huge eye roll as I turned to get back to work. “Oh, fuck! I need another screwdriver.”
With that, I stomped off into the main part of the shop, Estelle’s laughter trailing behind me.
So much for not thinking about the big, scary, hot guy that I’d accidentally— but kind of on purpose— stabbed.
Who was he?
No.
No.
Get your mind off the man and your head in the game.
Time was ticking down and we were so close to opening that I could smell it.
Or maybe those were the paint fumes.
Either way, I smelled something. And that something told me it was nearing showtime.
“I think we need to make it a margarita night after that,” Wade said with a smile as she walked a new screwdriver over to me. She held it out in my direction very carefully and I knew she was being dramatic. “What do you say? Tequila and some sewing? I need to finish my new outfit for the opening.”
Oh, I hadn’t mentioned this, but Wade and Darlene made most of our clothing. Well, mostly Wade because Darlene always seemed to get bored halfway through and start something new. And I’m talking about like old school patterns and a sewing machine. It was super cool and honestly, it worked out best for me because they made it fit my shape perfectly. I couldn’t have asked for a better group of girls in my life and I wasn’t just saying that because of the clothes.
Really.
Okay, that was a huge bonus. But it was more than that. They were soul sisters for life. We’d found each other at the right times in our lives and we’d stuck together. We created this dream and here we were, making it a reality.
Yeah, life was starting to get good again.
“I’m in,” I said, happy that it wouldn’t require me to leave the building. “I’ll handle the buttons.”
I knew how to sew but her machine hated me. So I had given up trying. One day, maybe, I’d get my own, but for now, I handled the buttons and the little extra details that made the clothing pop.
“I don’t know if I should trust you with a needle and thread after today, someone might lose an eye,” Wade joked with a hip bump as she moved to whatever she was working on next.
“Oh, you’re so funny,” I said, sticking my tongue out at her even though her back was to me. “That’s why you don’t sneak up on people. Cough. Clear your throat. Something. Jeez. It wasn’t my fault!”
Laughter bounced off the walls all around me.
We worked hard the rest of the afternoon. By the end of the day, I was so exhausted that I was ready to collapse in my bed and sleep for days. But I sucked it up and got myself pumped for margaritas and whatever kind of shenanigans they were going to get into. I imagined it couldn’t have been anything too bad since we were staying in.
Then again, I had to watch these girls all the time.
“You coming up?” I asked Estelle when I noticed she was hanging back a bit.
“Be up in a minute,” she told me with a tired smile.
I stumbled back down a few steps, letting the rest of the girls go in without me.
“You okay?” I asked with genuine concern in my tone.
She wouldn’t talk about it but I wasn’t blind. Come on, I’d been around this woman all my life.
“You know what happens when you screw too much,” she replied trying to joke about it. And that was just her, so I let her finish. “You get sore.”
“Oh, Estelle. I do love you,” I told her, my head shaking. “I’ll see you up there.”
Then I was sauntering up the stairs, my tired feet throbbing with each step.
The blender was already going when I walked into the bigger apartment.
Didi, Wade, and Darlene shared one space of the top floor and I had a little one-room apartment on the other side. It was really two rooms, one my bedroom and the other everything else. It wasn’t big, but it was perfect for me.
I chose to be alone because it was better for me. I was a light sleeper and woke with every little sound. With three, sometimes four when Estelle was in town, people in one area, well, I would never get a lick of sleep.
When we fixed up the top floor, I made sure the wall that separated the two apartments was good and soundproofed.
For my sanity and for their health.
Not even kidding with that one.
Wade was yelling over the blender and Darlene was pretending to ignore her across the room. Didi was off somewhere probably changing because she was just that way. The rest of us didn’t care that we had paint in our hair or God knew what on our clothes.
Estelle came back in just as we were sitting down with fresh drinks in our hands. Wade handed Estelle one and then we wasted no time diving in.
“Okay,” Estelle said and I knew work wasn’t over just yet. “I want to get at least one more girl in there. I’ve been scoping around but I haven’t found someone that I think would fit in with this place. Might have to look elsewhere and see if they want to move.”
“Well, we’d have to meet her first. Gonna be hard getting someone in here, she’s going to have to be just right.”
Wade wasn’t wrong. The three of us worked well together. And we couldn’t forget about Didi. She might not have anything to do with the ink shop but the two places were connected. We’d be around each other no matter what. And that was the way we wanted it.
“I’m going to need you to be nice and at least try,” Estelle told Wade with a no-nonsense look on her face. “You can’t go throwing attitude around right away simply because you don’t like change. Anyone I bring here, you have to give them a fair chance.”
Wade would be the toughest of us all to please. She was friendly enough, but it took a lot to get close to her. Once you did, you were golden. She was the type of person that would have your back for life.
“Fine,” Wade mumbled knowing better than to go up against Estelle. “But I think we should see how we do on our own at first. We might not even have that much business
to have four of us in the shop. And I don’t mind working long days. Not like I got a hell of a lot else going on in my life right now.”
“Me too,” I said a little sadly. Yeah, yeah, I know. I was the only one to blame for that. I was comfortable with it that way. Besides, I had more than enough things to fill up my time.
“I don’t mind working, but I need days off too,” Darlene chimed in with a pointed look.
“We’re still thinking of staying closed on Monday’s, right?” Didi asked as she walked into the room.
She was on her own basically. Sure, she was trying to find helpers to run the front but that girl wouldn’t let anyone touch the baking. She was determined to do it on her own. Deep down, I think she was trying to keep her recipes a secret. And I couldn’t blame her because her stuff tasted amazing. Like out of this world. I hadn’t had anything that compared as of yet.
Her goods were sweet treat crack.
“I think Monday is a good day still,” I piped up. It would be a nice reward after getting through the weekend.
“I agree,” Darlene chimed in.
“Good,” Didi said blowing out a cute, dramatic relieved breath.
“Are we done with the work talk now?” Wade said as she moved to refill her glass.
Estelle laughed and waved her off.
And then it was time for some fun. Well, as much fun as five girls could have with never-ending margaritas and a room full of fabric and buttons.
CHAPTER FIVE
Blade
“Holy shit!” Sketch said and I knew whatever was to follow would be offensive to some degree. “Those bitches are fine as fuck! Yo, C-Money, you see this shit? Daymn. Blade? Those the bitches from across the way?”
I jumped to my feet and tried to walk quickly— but casually— out of my booth.
Sure enough, there was the group from across the way walking down the street away from their shop. The wide windows that lined our shop gave a perfect view of them. I hadn’t had time to take in the other women yesterday, but I wasn’t trying to change that now. My eyes were only glued to one of them. The one that I hadn’t been able to get off my mind for the last twenty-four hours. I was so obvious about it that Charming spent most of the night shaking his head and telling me I was in trouble now.
Fuck that.
Yeah, that ass was trouble, but she seemed like she wouldn’t touch me with a ten-foot pole, so it wasn’t like I could do anything but forget her.
But forgetting her had been harder than I ever could imagine.
And seeing her now, hair up like a pin-up goddess and retro jumper that did nothing to distract from her luscious curves, only made it worse.
“Fuck me, look at the legs on that blonde one.” Sketch let out an exaggerated groan. “Shit, and those heels. Wonder if she’d like a tour of my room.”
My arm swung out, my hand plastered to his chest not too lightly, stopping him from taking a step forward.
“No,” I barked and said nothing else.
“What, thought you like redheads. You can have her, she looks perfect for you.”
“No,” I said again.
I wasn’t interested in the blonde or any of the other ones, but I wasn’t going to let him mess up any little chance I might have.
“Stay the fuck away,” I told him.
“The fuck?”
Scrambling, I told him the one thing that would put him off to the idea of touching any of them.
“They work over there. Do you really want her that close after you’re done with her?”
“Word. Good lookin’ out, bro.” He clapped me on the shoulder and walked further into the shop.
I rolled my eyes.
“Ohmigod, do you know who that is?” Cami whispered like it was the world’s biggest secret.
“Who?” I asked, my gaze still out the windows.
“The tall one, black hair.” Two of them had black hair so that wasn’t telling me much. “That’s Estelle Wilder.” There was awe in her tone and I didn’t understand why.
“Okay,” I grunted. That told me nothing and I didn’t really give much of a fuck since she wasn’t talking about the woman that had all of my attention.
Cami let out a frustrated huff beside me. It was more soft than mad but I’d been around her long enough to know what it meant. I was missing something here, something big. And she just couldn’t believe I didn’t have a fucking clue why this Estelle woman was so important.
I watched Harley until she was out of sight like some kind of fucking creeper. But I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. I drank it all in, seeing her careless surrounded by everyone. Her cute little walk. The way she threw her head back when she laughed. The smile that lit up her face. The way the huge curls at the bottom of her hair bounced with each step she took.
I guess Charm wasn’t too far off.
One run-in with this chick and I was deep in trouble.
“Blade?” Cami said breaking me out of my thoughts.
“Yeah,” I grunted as I turned around.
“You have an appointment in fifteen.”
“Shit. Thanks.” I told her as I made my way back into my booth.
On autopilot, I wiped everything down just to keep it as sterile as possible, and then readied my tray with the basics. I wasn’t quite sure what this chick wanted so it was best to wait before pulling out needles and shit until she picked her jewelry.
I had a few minutes left by the time I was done. I called my baby and took her out the front so she could get some fresh air and make shit if she needed to. She didn’t, but she was happily dancing the moment we stepped out the front door, her little bright pink nails clicking on the concrete. She spun in circles around my feet, seeming to have a burst of energy all of a sudden. I stood still not wanting to trip over her and hurt either one of us.
Suddenly, she paused. I looked down to see the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end. Before I could turn my attention in the direction she was looking, she began to growl. Then she took off down the sidewalk, staying on this side of the street. She knew better than to go in the road. I didn’t know how, I hadn’t taught her that. Just seemed like something she instinctively knew. It didn’t take much to catch up with her since her legs were next to nothing. Her little barks came out one after the other. I had been so focused on catching her before she got too far that I didn’t even have a chance to see what she was so upset over. I bent down, scooped her up before she got herself hurt, and stood tall again a little too quickly.
“Fuck,” I grunted out feeling at least one of the stitches tear.
I looked up, my gaze colliding with the one woman I couldn’t get off of my mind.
“Fuck,” I said again.
The whole group of them were standing there watching me. Well, maybe my baby. Either way, I had their attention and wasn’t sure I liked it. There was a mix of energy coming from them.
But all I could focus on was Harley. Or so I assumed that was her name since that was what had been called out yesterday.
I took one look back at the shop wondering if my appointment was there yet.
Then I said fuck it, knowing they would wait or they wouldn’t, it was no skin off my nose.
With hesitant steps, I crossed the street, my gaze locked on hers the entire time.
I didn’t hear her gasp, but by the way her mouth parted and her chest expanded quickly, I could easily make the assumption that was what she’d done.
“Hey,” I said a little too gruffly. Her friends— co-workers, whatever— moved off to the side but didn’t take their eyes off of me. I guess I couldn’t blame them.
Harley, well, she shuffled back a tiny step but didn’t look away from me.
“Say hi, Har,” someone whispered out loud enough for us to hear.
Harley swallowed, then licked her bright red lips.
But she didn’t say anything.
“Look, I’m not good at this shit, but I wanted to say I’m sorry for startling you yesterday,” I
told her and yeah, I might have been scrambling for something to say. I meant it though and I did feel bad about it.
I cleared my throat and felt like I had ants crawling all over my skin.
“I stabbed you,” she said as if I didn’t know that. Then her gaze dropped to the spot that I knew was a bit of a mess right now. “Oh, you’re bleeding.”
“Yep,” I said flatly. What I’d really meant was to tell her I was fine because I was. This was a little nick compared to shit I’d had before.
Her eyes jerked back up to mine and they narrowed like she couldn’t believe I’d said only that.
“Well, I got shit to do,” I said and turned to walk away.
I didn’t look back as I crossed the street.
I never said I was good with people and that right there proved it.
Fuck it.
And fuck her if she couldn’t accept my apology.
I didn’t have time for that shit.
I walked back into the shop and handed Biscuit over to Cami without a word. Then I headed to the bathroom to patch up my wound so I wouldn’t bleed all over the place and freak my customer out, whenever they showed that was. I’d just throw my cut on to hide the blood that had soaked through my shirt.
After I had it patched up good enough, I sent Charm a text letting him know I’d need him to fix me again. I had torn both of the stitches and I knew he wouldn’t be happy. Didn’t matter, it was done, and it wasn’t like I hadn’t tried to be careful. I’d be damned if I let anything happen to my girl, scars and blood be damned.
“Let me know when my client is here,” I yelled out to Cami then sat my ass on the couch in the back room.
This was my spot. I shared it with my baby of course, but no one else dared sit here on the chance that I might need this space.
It was where I went when I got too heated.
Thinking on it, I hadn’t had to use it in a long time. I’d been able to keep myself under control. But here I was, feeling like I was slipping backward and I fucking hated it.
No woman was worth getting this upset over.
No damn woman should make me second guess myself.
And well, this was what it was. I felt like a complete fuckwad when it came to her. Fuck, I didn’t even know her and she had my head a mess. I’d barely said anything to her but here I was, rehashing it in my head.