Three Little Words: A Tattooed Bad Boy Romance (No Regrets Ink Book 3)

by Adele Niles

  “Okay, well, I’m telling you that it needs to stop, Bryan.”

  He sighed. “God, you’re such a bitch.”

  “Sure am.” I sighed, shaking my head. “This is why I didn’t want you getting involved with a motorcycle club, Bryan. You have to get out.”

  “You think they’ll just let me leave?” He sounded more alert than before. “It’s not gonna happen, Bryn. People don’t just walk away.”

  “Okay, well…”

  I paused when I heard a car pull up. I couldn’t see the driveway, but it had to be Benny. I swallowed and shouted, “We’re in the back. Just walk around!”

  A moment later, he appeared, wearing pajama pants and a sweatshirt. He was here, though. That’s all that mattered.

  “Holy shit.” Benny came closer, crouching down next to me. He looked seriously at Bryan. “What happened?”

  “He got beat up. Somebody in the King’s Devils.”

  Benny frowned. “Who?”

  Bryan shook his head. “Dunno.”

  “You don’t know, or you won’t say?”

  Bryan huffed. “I don’t know. It was, like, five dudes.”

  Benny frowned.

  But he didn’t say anything else.

  I swallowed. “Benny, can you help me get him inside?”

  “Yeah.”

  Together, Benny and I lifted Bryan to his feet, supporting him on either side. We walked him inside and to his room, helping him into bed.

  Benny lingered for a minute. He looked at Bryan, frowning. “Does the club know about this?”

  He shook his head. “If the whole club knew, I’d be dead already.”

  Benny nodded once. “You rest. Okay?”

  “Sure thing, boss.”

  Benny put a hand on my shoulder and guided me out of the room.

  “Benny, what are we gonna do?” I looked up at him, eyes still stinging.

  Benny squeezed my shoulder. “I got somebody I can talk to. Okay?”

  “Who?”

  “Don’t worry about it. Um, just let me handle it.”

  I shook my head. “Bryan said they’ll kill him if he tries to leave.”

  “That won’t happen.” Benny lifted one hand, cradling my cheek. He kissed my forehead tenderly.

  It made me melt, just a little.

  “I’ll be back. Or I’ll call. Just wait for me, okay? Take care of Bryan while I’m gone.”

  I nodded. I rose on my toes, pulling him down and kissing him full on the lips.

  “Come back soon,” I said. “Okay? Please?”

  “I will. Hang tight, Bryn. It’ll be okay.”

  He turned and left.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Benny

  The Depot was already crowded, like it had been when I came drinking with Dak.

  I just hoped he was there. He was the one I needed to talk to.

  I walked in. A few people looked up at me, but I was here often enough that nobody bothered me.

  Nobody except Jazz.

  She immediately grabbed my arm and grinned up at me. “Hey, Benny.”

  She was dressed in leather again, her hair loose and curled. She was almost a distraction, but I stopped, took a deep breath.

  “Jazz. Is Dak around? I gotta talk to him.”

  “He’s in the back. You want me to get him?”

  “Please and thank you.”

  She smiled. “Anything for you, Benny.”

  She let me go and went to the back. A moment later, she returned. Dak was with her.

  He smiled when he saw me. “Benny. What’s up, man? You needed to talk to me?”

  “Hey, Dak.” I nodded, taking a deep breath. “Got somewhere quiet we can go?”

  I glanced toward Jazz, who stood there listening to us.

  Dak glanced at her, too, then nodded. “Yeah. Come on back, brother. Let’s talk.”

  Dak led me into the back room of the bar. I’d never been here before—this was the room where club business happened, the kind of thing I never wanted to be a part of.

  I didn’t need to be an accessory to any crimes, and I definitely didn’t need to get called in to testify against the King’s Devils.

  Dak sat down at one of the tables. We were the only people in the room. I joined him, sighing.

  “What’s going on?” he asked. “You look serious.”

  I folded my arms on the table. “Dak, I need a big favor.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “A favor, huh?”

  “Yeah.” I took a deep breath. “It’s asking a lot. I know it is. But…”

  “Well, spit it out. Don’t dance around it.” Dak chuckled, leaning back in his chair. “You need money?”

  “No. I’m good on money.” I exhaled slowly. “I need you to let Bryan Taylor out of the club.”

  Dak snorted. “That’s not gonna happen, Benny.”

  “I—I know that it’s hard, Dak. I do. But Bryan’s going through some shit right now. He needs time to get his head on straight, deal with his problems.”

  “You really don’t know how we operate, do you?”

  I flicked my tongue over my lower lip. “I don’t.”

  “When somebody wants out, we vote. And it has to be pretty close to unanimous.”

  “Dak, please.” I leaned forward a little. “Bryan’s in a real bad place. He’s doing cocaine. He needs to get himself back together before he can do this. Right now, he’s a liability. To you, to the whole club. If you let him out, his sister can help him get some better.”

  “His sister. Bryn, right? She used to come around with him sometimes. Real hot piece of ass.” Dak leaned back in his chair, studying me.

  I didn’t like how he talked about Bryn.

  But right now, I wasn’t going to argue it.

  I just wanted him to agree.

  “Listen, Benny.” He sighed. “I know what’s going on with Bryan.”

  “You do?”

  “Of course I do. I know everything that happens with my club. I know who’s on drugs, who’s going bankrupt, who’s pissed off what drug dealers. I know. And believe me—when somebody does something as stupid as skim a little money from my club, I know it.”

  My heart sank.

  I didn’t want to let Bryn down.

  Dak looked at me for a moment. He sighed, shaking his head. “Listen. I’ll look into it. Know what Bryan’s been up to, and I’ll see what I can do. No promises, but I’ll try.”

  That was enough.

  I nodded. “Yeah. Okay. I’ll, uh. Let him know.”

  “Tell him to keep his head down and stay the hell away from The Depot.”

  “I will.”

  Dak nodded. “And just so you know. This is because we’re friends. Because our dads were friends. They went way back. I’m hoping we can be friends for a long time, too.”

  “I’d like that.” I smiled. “I owe you, Dak.”

  “Goddamn right, you do.” He stood up, patting my shoulder. “C’mon. We gotta have a drink.”

  I laughed. “I can have one with you, but I gotta drive. And work.”

  “God, you’re no fun.” Dak led me back out to the bar.

  Jazz was already waiting with two shots of whiskey.

  Dak and I knocked them back. He threw his glass on the floor when it was empty.

  I did the same.

  “C’mere, brother.” He pulled me into a hug, slapping my back. “I’ll get in touch. Okay?”

  “Sounds good.” I nodded. “I’ll see you soon, Dak.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Bryn

  I called out of work for a few days.

  It wasn’t the best thing for me to do, financially, but it let me be at home for Bryan while he healed. He was lucky—all of the wounds were superficial. No broken bones, no concussions.

  He looked like shit, but he’d be fine in time.

  He still wouldn’t talk to me about what had happened. I had the little bit of information he’d given me and Benny the first day, but nothing beyond that
.

  Benny wouldn’t talk, either.

  I knew he’d been to talk to somebody, but he wouldn’t give me anything beyond that.

  But on the other hand, he dropped by every day.

  I liked having him there. I liked having him around, especially since Bryan was still a problem. Benny could talk to him more forcefully than I could, and Bryan would listen.

  And when Bryan was sleeping, Benny and I could be alone.

  It was nice to spend time with him again. We had a lot of sex, and tried not to talk about work. He brought me dinner when he came at night.

  He never stayed over.

  But it was cool.

  I didn’t need him to start staying over. We didn’t need to move fast.

  It was nice to have Benny there, but my priority was still Bryan.

  He was restless.

  Even before he’d gotten involved with the King’s Devils, he’d been the sort to get bored easily. He liked being outside. He liked exploring and traveling.

  And now he was stuck in my apartment.

  “I just want to get the hell out of here,” he said miserably, sitting on my couch one night.

  “Okay, well, you can’t. Not yet.” I shrugged. “I’m sorry.”

  Bryan groaned. “Isn’t Benny supposed to talk to somebody or whatever?”

  I shrugged. “He hasn’t mentioned it.”

  “But he’s been around so much. How has he not mentioned it?”

  “I don’t know. He just hasn’t. Maybe he hasn’t talked to them yet.”

  Bryan let out a huff. “Well, he needs to get on it. I want to leave.”

  “And go back to Richland?”

  He blinked at me like I’d said something offensively stupid.

  “No,” he said. “Like, get out of Kentucky.”

  I almost dropped the plate.

  “You want to just leave?”

  He shrugged. “Yeah. But I can’t. I don’t even know if it’s safe for me to walk out the front door.”

  I moved closer, sitting down on the bed. “You think it’s that dangerous?”

  “Could be. I dunno.”

  I sighed. “Okay. Um, stay here, all right? I gotta go to work today. I haven’t been by the shop in a few days.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Go do some cool tattoos and shit. I’ll be here.”

  I nodded. “Okay. Call if you need me?”

  “Yup. Will do.”

  “All right. See you tonight.”

  * * * * *

  I pulled into the lot at Skin Buzz. For a moment, I just sat in my car.

  It had been weird to take a few days off.

  There was only one other car there. I recognized the bumper stickers on the back—it had to be Marissa.

  Good. She was my best employee, and probably my closest friend.

  I walked into the shop. Marissa looked up, smiling brightly. Her red lipstick paired perfectly with her dark skin. As she ran across the shop to hug me, her tight corkscrew curls bounced.

  She was gorgeous, always dressed in retro-style clothes and made up like a pinup girl.

  “Bryn. We missed you so much!” She hugged me tight. I returned it, closing my eyes as we embraced.

  “I’m glad you’re here. I’ve missed you. And work. God, being stuck at home is miserable.”

  “Were you sick?” she asked. “Nobody really knew what happened, just that you were out.”

  She went to her chair, sitting down on her stool. The shop was spotless already; we just had to wait a few minutes to open.

  “No. My brother was in a little trouble. I had to stay home and take care of him.”

  “Shit. Is he okay?” She crossed her legs. The white ink tattoos on her thighs—shooting stars—looked good.

  “He’s all right.” I nodded. “He’ll be fine. He’s just housebound for now.”

  “Shit. Well, if y’all need anything, let me know. Okay?”

  “I will.” I smiled.

  Behind us, the front door opened. I must’ve forgotten to lock it. I turned. “Hey, sorry—”

  But it was Benny.

  What the hell was he doing here?

  I looked back at Marissa. She raised an eyebrow, smiling. She made a sound like a purr, rolling an R on her tongue.

  Anger flared up in my chest.

  “Hey! Whoa,” I said. “This one’s mine.”

  She blinked in surprise. “Really?”

  “Yeah.” I looked back to Benny.

  He was smiling.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Benny

  Skin Buzz was a gorgeous shop.

  It was colorful. Everything looked like it had come right out of the 50s or 60s, including the other artist in the shop with Bryn. The couches were mid-century, upholstered in bright blue vinyl. Pinup art hung in frames between flash sheets.

  I knew which booth was Bryn’s immediately. I would have known her art anywhere.

  I wished I’d come down here sooner.

  I heard Bryn talking sharply to the other girl, but not what she said. As I approached, I smiled. I nodded to the other girl first, then looked to Bryn. “Hey.”

  “Hey.”

  “Nice shop.”

  “Right? I think it’s a pretty good one.”

  I laughed. “No, really. You’ve done a great job. It looks beautiful.”

  She smiled. “You really think so?”

  “Yeah. I think so.”

  “Good. Well, what can I do for you? I’m assuming you’re not here for a tattoo.”

  “I’m not.” I shook my head. “You got a sec? Can we chat?”

  She looked to her coworker. “Marissa, can you hold the fort down for a minute? I need to talk to Benny.”

  “Benny? Wait, Benny? Benny Briggs? From No Regrets?” Marissa’s smile was suddenly gone, expression serious.

  “Yes, that Benny. It’s fine. Don’t worry.” Bryn waved her hand, dismissing whatever Marissa was nervous about. She looked back to me. “C’mon. My office.”

  “Sure.”

  I followed her to the back. Her office was clean, with real furniture and art on the walls.

  She’d invested a lot into this place.

  I wish I’d been there to see it happen.

  “So. What’s going on?” she asked, closing the door behind us.

  “It’s about Bryan.”

  Her attitude changed immediately. This wasn’t the boss babe of Skin Buzz—this was a worried sister, a woman scared for her only remaining family.

  She wouldn’t have to worry much longer.

  “I, um. Called in a favor.”

  “From who?” Bryn moved to sit down.

  I settled in the chair across from her. “From Dak.”

  “Dak?” Her back straightened. “Not Dak, the VP of the King’s Devils?”

  “Yes, that Dak.”

  “What the hell did you do that for?”

  “Because he’s my friend.”

  She blinked in shock. “Your friend?”

  “Yeah.” I shrugged. “I do all his work.”

  “His tattoo work? Or are you tied up in the club shit, too? Because if you are—” Bryn shook her head. “I can’t deal with that. Bryan’s bad enough.”

  “No, no. No. I do his tattoos. I have for years. My dad did all of his dad’s. Like, we go way back. But I’m not mixed up with their business. I don’t want to be. I tell him that all the time. Whatever the club’s up to, I don’t want to know.”

  Slowly, Bryn nodded. “Okay. So, what happened?”

  “I talked to him.”

  “All right. And?”

  “And he worked things out.”

  She sighed. “Will you quit being mysterious and tell me what the hell is going on?”

  “Okay.” I nodded. “The King’s Devils held a vote. On whether to let Bryan out or not.”

  Bryn bit her lower lip, hands clasped tight on her desk. “Okay.”

  “He’s good. They’re letting him go nomad. He can leave Richland and still technica
lly be a King’s Devil. Nobody will come after him.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief and leaned forward, putting her head in her hands. “Benny, oh my god.”

  “He needs to go west.” I leaned forward, too.

  I wanted to be close.

  I wanted to comfort her.

  “He needs to go into Ohio. Maybe further. If he stays in Malone, he’ll get the Raven’s Blood guys looking for him.”

  Bryn nodded. “Okay. Okay. Yeah. Um, I’ll tell him. Does he…did they…what about the money?”

  I had hoped she wouldn’t bring that up.

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “Benny, I have to worry about it. I need to know these guys aren’t going to come trash my shop.”

  “They won’t.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Because I handled it.”

  Bryn’s brows furrowed. “What?”

  “I handled it. Don’t worry.”

  “Well, how much was it?”

  I smiled. “Just, Dak’s gonna be getting a lot of free tattoos now. It’s fine.”

  She didn’t need to know her brother had stolen over three thousand dollars from a motorcycle gang.

  For a moment, Bryn just looked at me.

  Then, she stood. She leaned over the desk, her hands on my cheeks, and kissed me.

  It felt like it used to.

  Slow, passionate. Heated without being a precursor to sex.

  I lifted one hand, tucking a lock of hair back from her face.

  She pulled back and looked at me, smiling in spite of the tears in her eyes. “Thank you. Thank you so much, Benny.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Bryn

  Benny held me for a minute, until I got myself together.

  He had no idea how much this meant.

  I wiped my eyes, smiling. “You’re pretty amazing, Benny.”

  He shrugged. “It was the right thing to do. That’s all.”

  “Still. It means a lot.”

  He smiled.

  For a moment, we just looked at each other.

  He lowered his gaze with another shrug of his shoulders. He almost looked shy.

  It was cute.

  “Well, uh, I gotta go. I need to stop at the new location, see how things are going there.”

  “Okay. Um, have fun.”

  He took a deep breath. Still looking shy, he asked, “Do you want to come?”

  I wanted to.

  In more ways than one.